Infernal Legacy
by Wasmowin93
Summary: Three years have passed since the slaying of the False gem. With her threat now gone, other gems that had gone into hiding are reemerging. But just as things are looking up for the Crystal gems, four new warriors make themselves known to the world. Who are these warriors? What do they want? More importantly, do they pose a threat? *Sequel to History Lesson*
1. Chapter 1: Beating the Heat

Chapter 1

* * *

><p>July 6th, 2016.<p>

The burning summer sun scorched down onto Beach City. Everyone was trying to find ways to beat the heat. For Steven, that meant laying on his bed in his boxers with the ceiling fan on as high as it could go. It was way too hot outside, and even the temple felt like an oven. Had it not been for the fact that he already had a painful sunburn, he would have been splashing around the beach. But no, instead of that, he had to stay indoors while his reddened skin peeled.  
>To make it worse, he was bored out of his mind. The gems had been gone for hours and left him because of his sunburn.<p>

"Man...this really sucks," Steven panted as he wiped the sweat from his forehead. "How could I have forgotten the sunscreen?"

At sixteen years old, Steven was slightly taller and a little leaner, but not by much. He was still pudgy, but he was slowly growing into his weight.  
>While he still didn't fully understand his gem powers, he had managed to learn how to summon his weapon.<br>He still had a lot to learn before he could go on really dangerous missions, but he was content with that. He was in no hurry to rush into danger again.

He winced in pain as he rolled over onto his back. His skin stung as if he was on a hot iron skillet.  
>He could hear seagulls and ocean waves through his opened window. His mind began to wander into fantasies of splashing and playing in the refreshing cold water with Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl...and Connie...in a two piece swimsuit.<p>

"Aw man, get your head out of the gutter!" he grumbled as he smacked his hand against his forehead without thinking.

He then knew what Hell felt like.

With a pained squeal, Steven peeled his hand off of his forehead. Blinded by the burning on his face, Steven rolled off of his bed and smacked hard against the floor.

"This-really-sucks!" he groaned bitterly as he pushed himself off of the ground. "I bet the gems never get sunburned."

Steven ran his tongue along the roof of his mouth. He swore he felt sand in his mouth.

"Water..."he mumbled dryly.

He cautiously crept down to the kitchen, trying his hardest not to let anything touch his skin. After slamming down a tall glass of water, Steven tip toed into the living room , flopped on the couch, and flipped on the T.V. Once again, there was nothing worth watching, just bad sitcoms and weather men saying how hot it was. Annoyed, Steven turned off the T.V and flipped on the stereo and turned it up as loud as he could stand it.  
>The windows rattled and room vibrated at the sound of the loud techno music that Steven was blaring. He liked the way the he could feel the bass kick in his chest.<br>A childish smile crept across his face and he raised his hands in the air. The rhythm began to quicken and climb, growing higher in pitch as it did.  
>Steven's heart pounded with excitement as the percussion paused for a second; this was his favorite part.<br>He pointed his fingers to the ground at the pause with a sly smile on his face.

"Drop."

The base slammed hard like a sledgehammer as the sound system blasted the temple with a heart stopping bass drop.  
>The subwoofers on his speakers throbbed and shook as the music echoed throughout the temple. It felt like an earthquake in his head, and Steven loved it.<br>In the years that followed the battle with the False gem, Geissel, Steven had gone through a long phase of emotional development.  
>He wasn't the innocent kid he once was. He was older and (slightly) wiser to the way the world worked. He didn't know it, but it was just part of becoming an adult.<br>He was at the "stupid teenaged angst" part of growing up. The phase were one thinks everything really sucks.  
>But not even changing hormones could keep Steven down for long. He learned to fight depression with music, loud, blaring, trashy techno music.<br>The kind of music Pearl wouldn't let him listen to when he was younger.  
>The kind of music Amethyst danced to.<br>He didn't care how loud he played his music.  
>Hearing be damned!<br>While Steven moved his hands rhythmically to the fluctuating beat, the gleam of the warp pad flashed across the room.  
>He didn't bother to look up, he was too lost in his music to care.<p>

* * *

><p>As the gems exited the warp field, they were assaulted by the wall of sound that shook the temple.<br>Pearl covered her ears as they felt as though they were going to burst. Amethyst smiled and started dancing, she really liked Steven's new taste in music.  
>Garnet stood like a stone statue as music smashed against her. She had heard worse.<p>

"Steven, turn that down!" Pearl yelled loudly.

Steven didn't hear her, he simply bopped his head up and down to the rhythm. Pearl bit her lip in frustration. It felt like her gem was going to shatter the music was so loud.

"Steven, turn that down for goodness sake!" she screamed over the music.

Steven rolled over and looked up at the gems. He only heard bits and pieces of what the pale gem had said.

"Turn down...for what?!" Steven asked, raising his hand to his ear.

It hadn't dawned on him that he should turn down the music. Finally, Pearl had had enough of the deafening, tuneless, and in her mind terrible excuse for music.  
>She swiped the remote out of Steven's hand and shut off the music.<p>

"Hey, what gives?" Steven asked as he sprang off of the couch. "That was my jam."

"Steven Quartz Universe, you are going to ruin your hearing listening to that noise!" Pearl exclaimed in an upset motherly tone.

Steven rolled his eyes, it was way too hot in the temple for her nagging.

"Well excuse me," he said sarcastically. "I was just trying to keep myself from dying of boredom."

"Well, I liked it," Amethyst chuckled obnoxiously. "That beat was pounding! And that drop was sick! Where did you find those beats anyway?"

Steven shuffled painfully over to the stereo and ejected the CD and tossed it over to Amethyst. The three gems all looked down and read the marker written label on the CD. It was titled 'Music to Listen to When I'm Pissed # 3'.

"Steven, where did you find this-this- filth?" Pearl stammered with a mixture of anger and disbelief at the vulgar title.

"I found it in that box of stuff Tibbets left me," Steven responded. "And it's not filth, it's music."

Pearl pressed her fingers against her temples, her head was still pounding.

"Children these days, I swear..."she sighed tiredly.

Whatever had been blaring out of those speakers was not what Pearl would call music.

"How is your sunburn?" Garnet asked, ending her silence.

Steven showed off his reddened, flaking back and chest.

"Still feels like jumped out of a fryer," he whined. "I feel like I'm the temple's personal Steven jerky dispenser."

Amethyst let out her usual loud laughter while Pearl gagged in disgust. Garnet tossed a blue bottle of liquid over to Steven.

"It's for your sunburn," she stated flatly.

Steven smiled, at last, salvation. He would have hugged her if it weren't for the fact that such an act would feel like being placed on a searing grill.

"Thanks, Garnet," he exclaimed happily. "I'll go slather this stuff on right now."

"Just clean up the floor once the dead skin peels off," she said with a small smile as she watched Steven run off the the bathroom.

* * *

><p>While Steven was treating his sunburn, the gems gathered in the living room to discuss current events.<br>Even through they spent most of their time going on missions, the gems were not blind to the world around them.  
>For months large cargo ships had been unloading massive amounts of building equipment.<br>Every now and again, CH-47 Chinook helicopters could be seen transporting large containers over to east part of the city.  
>They didn't know what was being built, but knew that it was going to be big. The amount of steel girders and concrete that they had seen being transported gave them a rough estimation on the size of the structure. It was going to be at least as big as their temple. Despite the size of the construction, the gems had not been able to see what was being built. A huge black canopy had been placed over the construction sight and was heavily guarded by the U.S military.<br>Any attempts to approach the sight would be unwise, as the gem's relationship with the government was still fragile after the damages their battle with the False gem had caused. It troubled the gems deeply that the humans no longer fully trusted them, but it troubled Garnet the most.  
>She was old enough to know that humans are not to be underestimated. She had seen their ability to change and adapt countless times.<br>It still seemed like only yesterday the humans were arguing and bickering over whether or not the planet was round.  
>Now they had fought through two world wars, split the atom, and had walked on the moon.<br>If there was something they wanted to do, they would do it or fall by the wayside.

"I saw another one of those cargo ships dock today," Pearl stated calmly. "This time it was filled with cables and other electronics."

"Makes a girl wonder what they're building over there," Amethyst yawned, not too interested.

"Whatever they're building, it' none of our concern," Garnet stated flatly as she adjusted her shades.

"I know, but it worries me," Pearl sighed with a stressful tone. "You know how humans can be."

Garnet shook her head, she secretly was dying to know what the government had been building for the last three years.  
>From the amount of troops being transported out of the city, it seemed more likely that whatever they were building was nearing completion.<br>Hopefully whatever they had been building wasn't some kind of new super weapon or something of the like.

The flashing light of the warp pad all broke the gems from their thoughts. Only they could work the warp pad, no one else was supposed to be able to use it.  
>Not knowing what was being teleported into the temple, the gems all readied their weapons.<p>

As the light of the warp pad faded, the gems all lowered their weapons and stood awestruck.  
>Garnet felt her heart skip as what looked like an elderly Native American woman wobbled off of the warp pad.<br>She wore a teal buckskin dress and a long blue beaded shawl with white tassels hanging off of it's edges.  
>She had pale teal skin and long blue hair so dark that it looked black. In her hair she wore three eagle feathers.<p>

"It can't be...," Pearl rasped in disbelief. "Turquoise?"

The old woman glance up to Pearl. She reached out and tenderly placed her hands on Pearl's face. Pearl felt strangely calm and relaxed at the old gem's touch.

"Aké iyúškinyan wancínyankelo, Pearl," Turquoise spoke happily.

The language she was speaking was Lakota. Pearl shook her head, showing that she didn't understand what Turquoise was saying.  
>Turquoise frowned and cleared her throat.<p>

"I said, I'm glad to see you again, Pearl," she spoke in perfect english. "Now, where is Rose? I need to speak with her."

* * *

><p>Deep within the confines of the newly constructed "Monastery" the lead professor Adler was busy monitoring the progress of the task he had been assigned three years ago. He was so excited, in just one more day, he could show the world the fruits of his labor.<p>

"When you four are shown to the world, it will mark a new era of protection for humanity," he spoke eagerly. "Where grandfather failed, I will succeed."


	2. Chapter 2 : The Remnant Gems

Chapter 2

* * *

><p>The gems could not believe what was happening. They had not heard from any other gems for nearly seventy-eight years.<br>They thought there were no more left on Earth. But standing before them was one of the oldest of the crystal gems, Turquoise.

"I'm sorry it took me so long to reach you," Turquoise sighed sadly. "It took me two years to find another working temple, and another year to find the other survivors."

"Survivors?" Garnet asked. "Survivors of what?"

"The False gem," Turquoise responded somberly. "But I felt her unholy power fade from this world which could only mean that Rose has slain her."

Turquoise shambled up to Garnet and took her hand. Turquoise rubbed her wrinkled hands against Garnet's in a grandmotherly way .

"I don't expect forgiveness from you three, nor do I deserve it," Turquoise stated with shame heavy in her voice. "But, please, forgive the others. They only hid because I begged them to."

"Others?" Garnet asked.

The familiar gleam of the warp pad flashed brightly. Out of the light of the warp pad walked out a gem warrior followed by another, then another. In total, four gems emerged from the warp pad.

The first warrior Garnet recognized as Pounamu or as she preferred, Jade, the leader of the crystal temple in New Zealand.  
>Pounamu was as tall as Garnet but more densely built. Her light green skin was covered in black Māori tribal warrior tattoos from head to toe.<br>Her lips were black and her eyes were bright green. Her hair was dark green and was tied back into long braids and tipped with hollowed bone beads.  
>The little clothing she wore was a fur and grass skirt and a leather tube top.<br>As if to add a sense of ferocity to her, she had her nose pierced with a sharpened bone.  
>Her gem was located on her tongue.<p>

The second gem that followed Pounamu was a dark blue gem. Pearl felt her heart leap happily once she recognized who the gem was.  
>The blue gem was Azurite from the crystal temple located in Lyons, France.<br>Azurite was about the same height as Pearl but wasn't as lithely built. She wore her hair in a short braided pony tail with a blue bow on the end.  
>She wore an unbuttoned blue and gold Hussar that rested over her shoulders like a cape.<br>Underneath, she wore a white ruffled dress shirt with frilled cuffs and a blue pair of trousers and cavalry boots.  
>Azurite, unlike the other gems, was known to keep her weapon summoned at all times.<br>She kept it in a sheath that was strapped to her waist. Her gem weapon was a rapier sword.

Clinging onto Azurite was a gem that was short and doll-like. The young gem was Amber.  
>She was the youngest gem warrior left on the world.<br>She didn't even know how to summon her weapon yet.  
>Amber had light yellow skin with golden yellow eyes and curly hair. She was dressed in a cute Victorian era dress, bonnet, and buckle shoes.<br>Amber looked timid and shy as she hid her face behind Azurite.

The last gem to exit the warp pad was Carnelian from the temple in Rajasthan, India.  
>She had light orange skin and dark blood red hair. She wore a gold sari that was tied around her waist and draped over her shoulder.<br>She wore a red and gold silk churidaar kurta. She wore no shoes but had her feet wrapped in golden cloth.  
>Her gem stone was located on the center of her forehead like a Hindu bindi ornament.<p>

* * *

><p>As the four gems approached, the three gems didn't know how to react.<br>They were overjoyed knowing that some gem warriors were left on the world, but shocked at how few were left.  
>Once, there were hundreds if not thousands of gem warriors. Now there were only five left, not including Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl.<br>This revelation was painful to acknowledge. Even though they knew they were no longer the last crystal gems, it was still obvious that their era had ended.  
>The three gems stood with their mouths agape in awe.<br>With the awkward silence hanging over the room, Pounamu smiled smugly, showing her filed teeth.

"Not the response I was wanting," she spoke in a gruff voice.

Pounamu's sass was rewarded by a elbow to the ribs by Azurite.

"_Taisez-vous_!" she hissed in French. "This is not about you!"

Pounamu growled and glared down at Azurite angrily. Amber trembled behind Azurite and tried to calm the two down.

"Umm...please...stop fighting," she squeaked timidly.

The two gems didn't pay Amber any mind as they were about to burst into violence.

"Barbarian," Azurite hissed as she placed her hand on the handle of her rapier.

"Princess," Pounamu growled as she flared her tongue, an insult in Māori culture.

Before the two could start going at it, a pair of weathered hands pulled them by their ears. They yelped in pain as they were forced into submission

"I yield, I yield!" Pounamu cried out.

"_Miséricorde_," Azurite whimpered in pain.

"By the Creator, you two will behave yourselves," Turquoise ordered firmly as she released the two gems from her vice-like pinch.

Garnet decided that it was time for answers.

"How did you all manage to hide from the False Gem?" she asked flatly.

The five remnant gems all had looks of guilt and shame over their faces. Turquoise sighed and shook her head sadly.

"By hiding deep within the Earth," she spoke bitterly. "Those that could see the threat that the False Gem posed hid before she could find us. Those that didn't...well..."

"They were eaten!" Pounamu barked loudly. "She ate the others while we hid like cowards!"

"Pounamu!" Azurite snapped angrily. "Not in front of Amber!"

Amber started crying loudly as images of the False Gem flashed in her mind. Turquoise kneeled and opened her arms.  
>Amber ran and embraced Turquoise, sobbing loudly. Turquoise wrapped the young gem in her shawl covered arms and rocked her back and forth, singing softly in Lakota.<p>

"It ate my mamma and sisters!" Amber sobbed. "It said I was too small to eat!"

Pearl felt shivers run down her spine. She still had nightmares about the nuclear abomination and it's disgusting lust and hunger.  
>As Turquoise set Amber back on her feet, Garnet placed her hand on her shoulder. She hoped that maybe some of the non-warrior gems would have survived in hiding along with them.<p>

"How many of the non-warriors survived?" Garnet asked.

Turquoise pulled her shawl over herself comfortingly.

"Only one-hundred non-warriors remain."

"Only one-hundred?!" Amethyst exclaimed with shock.

Pearl gasped at the dismal number. It was less than one percent of their former population. She knew that their numbers had been thinning before the False gem's systematic feeding, but never knew that Geissel had killed so many in her brief seventy-two years of life. But her reign of terror was over, and now the world was freed of her corruption.

"Those infernal creatures of her's tore though the few non-warriors that we had left on Earth," Carnelian spoke in a hushed tone. "They burnt down the spires and ate those the False gem didn't desire for herself."

"Yeah, we fought those creatures here... on our own...without help," Amethyst stated coldly. "They were called Burners."

Pounamu growled and crossed her arms in frustration. She had longed to slay on of those creatures, but the one time she ever faced one, it burnt her so badly that she had to retreat into her gemstone. Had it not been for Turquoise, Pounamu would have been killed.

"Were?" She asked "You mean they are all dead?"

Garnet nodded her head.

"They all died when the False gem died," she answered flatly.

"So, Rose did slay the False gem," Turquoise stated jovially. "Where is she? I wish to speak with her."

The gems fell silent. It had been decades since they had any contact with the other gem temples. A lot had happened since Rose last held a council with other temple leaders. Word of her death had not reached the remnants, nor did they know about Steven. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl all tried to find the proper words address Rose's death when they heard the bathroom door slam shut.

"Hey Garnet, that stuff you gave me really worked!" Steven exclaimed happily as he slid down the stairs hand railing. "My sunburn is totally-"

Steven stopped mid-sentence once his eyes fell upon the remnants. They all stared at him with a mixture of shock and confusion.

"Uhh...Garnet...who are these people?" he asked as he cautiously crept towards his friends.

Pearl felt like she was sweating bullets as she tried to get herself between Steven and the remnants. She had no idea how they were going to react to him.

"Steven, these are our fellow crystal gems," Pearl stated calmly. "They are our friends."

She shot a piercing glare at the five remnant gems.

"Right?"

"What in the name of the river Styx is that creature?" Pounamu asked with hostility in her voice. "It's hideous!"

"Back at ya' beautiful," Steven hissed.

Pounamu flared her tongue and with a green flash summoned her weapon; a five foot long Taiaha war staff.  
>Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl all summoned their weapons. Fellow gem or not, they wouldn't hesitate to destroy anything that threatened Steven.<br>Just as the situation seemed to fall into chaos, Turquoise summoned her gem artifact; a Prayer Stick.

"_Wolakota_," she whispered softly.

She shook the prayer stick, and out of the dream catcher like end of the stick, a blue wave of energy washed over the room.  
>Steven, the gems, and the remnants all felt as though all of their hostility was washed from their bodies as the blue light filled the room.<br>Slowly, the gems and the remnants all felt the need to rest their legs and sat down in a circle around Turquoise.  
>Turquoise shuffled up to Steven and placed her hand on his forehead.<p>

"Tell me young one, what is your name?" she asked with a kindhearted smile.

"My name...my name is Steven Quartz Universe," he answered sleepily.

Turquoise closed her eyes and felt an overwhelming sadness crash down over her. She dropped her prayer stick and returned the room back to normal.  
>One of her unique abilities was that Turquoise could learn someone's history through their names. Overcome with grief, Turquoise fell to the floor.<p>

"Granny Turquoise!" Amber cried out as she ran to her aid.

"He is her child..." Turquoise muttered softly.

"Who is who's child?" Azurite asked as she helped her mentor to her feet.

"The boy, Steven, he is Rose's child," Turquoise responded shaking with grief.

"Her child?" Pounamu asked in disbelief. "But it reeks of human!"

Turquoise's eyes flashed a bright blue and she rose up into the air. Her gaze snapped to Pounamu.

"I will not sit by and let one such as you disrespect the child of Rose Quartz!" she roared like a clap up thunder.

Pounamu fell back on her rear and started to crawl away from the enraged Turquoise. Garnet was surprised to see her so scared.  
>Pounamu was a very proud and boastful gem, yet Turquoise had her tripping over herself like a newborn deer.<br>Turquoise slowly lowered to the ground and her eyes stopped glowing. She sighed heavily, she didn't understand how, but she knew that Rose was gone, yet had managed to pass her gem over to her child. It defied the laws that she had learned by heart, but she didn't care. All she knew was that her closest friend had died thinking she was one of the last gems left on Earth, and it was her own fault.

"So, his father is a human?" Turquoise asked as she turned back to Garnet.

Garnet nodded her head a dispersed her gantlets.

"Yes, his father is a human," she answered flatly. "That isn't a problem, is it?"

Turquoise shook her head and smiled tiredly. She felt weak and frail with sadness, but saw something inside of Steven; the possible future of gem kind.

"No, it's not," Turquoise responded softly. "It's just going to be hard to explain to the remnants that Rose is...well...you know."

Turquoise waved to her warriors, signaling that it was time to leave. One by one, they bowed and returned to the warp pad.  
>They didn't know it yet, but they were about to hear the worst news they had heard in years; Rose Quartz was dead.<p>

"We will keep in contact with you, but for now we must...spread the word," Turquoise sighed sadly.

The light of the warp pad flashed as the remnant gems were teleported out of the temple. The gems stood silent as they tried to process all of what had happened. Steven, who was still dressed only in his boxers walked and stood in front of the gems.

"Okay, anyone want to tell me what that was all about?!"

Garnet opened her mouth to speak, but felt a slight disturbance near the city. She focused on the disturbance and saw that it was a massive Centipeetle Queen and it's offspring attacking the boardwalk.

"We will explain later," Garnet stated firmly. "Right now, the city is in danger."

"Finally, some action!" Steven exclaimed eagerly. "I've been wanting to punch something all day!"

The four gems all rushed out of the temple, ready to protect humanity once again.

"Wait, Steven, go put some clothes on first," Pearl said with a stress filled tone.

* * *

><p>"Professor Adler, we have activity near the city, how should we proceed?"<p>

Adler smiled and checked his watch. Technically, he wasn't supposed to let his project into the public eye for another day.  
>But when was he going to get another opportunity like this again. A few days? A few weeks? No, it needed to be now.<p>

"Let me ask the boys if they are up to the task first," Adler spoke in his thick German accent.

Adler exited the monitor room and walked down the hallway and rang for the elevator.

"It is all going to work out," he spoke to himself as the elevator door opened to another section of the "Monastery".

Four beings were training and sparring against each other when Adler walked into the room.

"Boys, assemble!" Adler ordered loudly.

Almost instantly, the four beings stopped what they were doing and filed in front of Adler.

"You are needed in the city," he stated firmly. "Now this will be your first mission outside of the Monastery. You are no longer in training. This is where the real thing begins!"

He then showed the beings photos of Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven.

"This is your competition," Adler stated coldly. "You are not to engage them with hostility unless they provoke you. Do you understand?"

"Sir, yes Sir!"

The middle being stepped forward and saluted.

"Are you and your comrades ready for action, Wolfram?"

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Granted."

"We were born ready!"


	3. Chapter 3 : Gems and Alloys

Chapter 3

* * *

><p>With loud, wailing screech, the Centipeetle Queen released a thick spray of acid that ate through anything it touched.<br>It's smaller offspring crawled and tore through anything they could get their pincers on. Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl rushed into combat as quickly as they could.  
>This was not their first time fighting a Centipeetle Queen so they already knew what to expect.<br>Or so they thought.

* * *

><p>"Amethyst, Pearl, you two deal with the broodlings!" Garnet ordered. "I'll handle the Queen!"<p>

Amethyst let her whip tear through the air and ripped apart a small group of centipeetles with a loud crack.  
>Pearl cut and stabbed her way through a crowd of centipeetles with the grace of a ballerina dancer. The centipeetles broodlings seemed lighter for some reason, they lacked the force earlier broods had, but they made up for it with a drastic increase in speed. A pink shield flew through the air and sliced through a cluster of centipeetles. The shield spun back around and returned to it's master.<p>

"Oh, yeah! That's what I live for!" Steven yelled ecstatically. "God, I love this thing!"

"Steven, watch out!" Pearl cried out over the loud fray of combat.

Almost on instinct, Steven summoned a shield around himself just as the Centipeetle Queen regurgitated a stream of acid at the young half gem.  
>The acid slid harmlessly off of the pink translucence shield, leaving Steven with a smug smile.<p>

"You'll have to do better than that to take me down!" he laughed meanly.

The Centipeetle Queen thrashed it's body against the ground and cracked the ground underneath it. The gems all struggled to stay balanced while the centipeetle broodlings curled up into themselves. The broodlings began to secrete a thick layer of green slime around their bodies.  
>After a few seconds, the slime hardened into a shell. This was new to the gems. No other centipeetle brood had shown this ability before.<br>Suddenly, the shells burst and revealed a large winged wasp like creature. It had four wings and stood three feet at full height.  
>It's pincers dripped with acid and a scorpion like stinger curled threateningly.<p>

"Uhh...Pearl, what are those?" Amethyst asked unnerved.

Before Pearl could answer, the Centipeetle Queen raised itself to full height and let out an ear splitting screech.  
>All at once, the wasps took flight and began to swarm the gems.<br>The gems fought back as hard as they could, but there were simply too many wasps and they were too fast.  
>They felt the barbed stingers of the wasps pierce deep into their bodies as the swarm engulfed them. Steven had no intention of dying like this, like a punk.<br>He yelled out angrily and released a massive shield that expelled the swarm and protected the gems. But he knew the shield was only a temporary fix.  
>Though they were safe for now, it was only a matter of time before the strain of holding the shield up would become too much for him.<p>

"Some help those remnant gems were!" Steven yelled as he strained to hold up the shield.

"Garnet, is there any way to contact the remnants for help?!" Pearl asked over the buzzing of the wasp's wings.

"If they are in a working temple, then they probably know we are in trouble, and should be here soon," Garnet stated as she fought the numbness in her hands from the wasp venom.

"I hope you're right Garnet, cuz' this shield isn't gonna last much longer!" Steven groaned as she felt his body begin to weaken. "And acid burns don't go away with ointment!"

A loud crack sounded above them, the shield was cracking.

"Garnet, what do we do now?!" Pearl ask as she began to panic.

Suddenly, something swept across the swarm of wasps like a hot knife through butter.  
>The Centipeetle Queen turned to where the attack had came from but was struck in the head by a massive falling object.<br>The object hit the ground and dug it's fingers into the ground to stop itself. Resting over it's shoulder was what looked like a massive sledgehammer.  
>It stood at least eight feet tall with broad shoulders. It was covered in a smoky black armor that looked like an old cast iron boiler stove.<br>It's head was covered by a helmet that looked more like a stove grate than an actual helmet.  
>Landing on it' back was a smaller humanoid covered in a dull blue metal suit of armor. This being's armor was sleeker and less obstructive than it's colossal comrade. Hanging off of its right arm was a long metal chain and tow hook. It's face was covered in a crimson scarf and a pair of goggles. The being swung the hook and flung it into a small swarm of wasps and propelled itself into the fray.<br>After a gout of steam burst from its helmet, the colossal armored warrior bulled into the battle.

"What are those things?!" Steven asked as the gems watched the swarm turn their attention towards the new threat.

"I don't know, they don't look like any gems we know!" Pearl responded as she watched the two warriors slaughter the wasps.

"Should we help them out?" Amethyst asked, not really sure what they should be doing.

As if to answer their question, something rushed past the gems and lept into the fray.  
>In the few seconds Garnet had to look at this third new warrior, she saw that it was covered in a polished gray suit of smooth and sloped armor.<br>It's face was obstructed by a smooth helmet and visor. She noticed that it's left hand was covered in a clawed gauntlet.  
>It moved at unbelievable speeds, and carved through the remainder of the wasps in a trail of sparks.<br>The Centipeetle Queen let out a loud angry screech as it attacked the three warriors. The two smaller warriors darted along each side of the Queen.  
>The blue warrior tossed it's chain over to the polished warrior who caught with his free hand.<br>The chain suddenly superheated and the two warriors began to spin and launch the other in a whirlwind like formation, slicing thought the Queen's legs.  
>The Queen cried out in pain and fell to the ground. Despite no longer having legs, the Queen continued to thrash and spray acid.<br>The colossal warrior lept and slammed it's sledgehammer against the Queen's lower jaw, tearing it off.  
>Just when the gem's thought nothing more could possibly surprise them, a gray blur swept across the Queen's head.<br>Suddenly, the Queen's eye was split in two in a spray of acid. The Queen fell to the ground, it couldn't fight back, it was too wounded.  
>Standing on top of the dying Queen was a fourth warrior. This warrior wore a gray suit of armor that was reminiscent of a full plate knight armor.<br>This warrior welded two cavalry sabers in each hand. With a spray of green blood, the warrior drove the sabers into the back of the Queen's head, killing it instantly. As the Queen's body vanished and it's gem fell to the ground, the warriors all gathered around in a circle.

"Time, two minutes and twenty-three seconds!" the blue warrior yelled out.

"We need to do better," the gray warrior stated flatly.

"I don't know, I thought we did pretty good," the blue warrior responded as it swung it's chain playfully. "Rad moves back there, bro."

"Oh, thank you brother," the polished warrior stated jovially in a flamboyant voice.

"I had fun," the colossal warrior growled deeply.

"Um, excuse me," Pearl squeaked nervously.

The four warriors all turned and readied their weapons.

"At ease men!" the gray warrior ordered loudly.

The other three warriors lowered their weapons and took a step back. The gray warrior, which by now was obviously the leader approached the gems.

"What do you four want?" he asked flatly.

"We came to protect the city from that creature," Garnet stated just as flatly. "We appreciate the help, but we can take it from here."

A loud laugh burst from the polished warrior.

"Help? Sweetie, we weren't helping you," he hissed as he ran his fingers along his claws.

"That's enough, Steel," the gray warrior responded. "Go collect the crystal and prep it for containment."

The polished warrior named Steel pouted and ran his hand over his helmet. The helmet folded back and revealed his face. Steel had ivory white skin and marble like eyes. His hair was white and held back in a pony tail.

"Fine, preping the crystal for extraction," Steel grumbled as he picked up the crystal.

"Hey, that's ours!" Amethyst shouted as she pushed past Garnet and Pearl.

Before she could even get close to crystal, the colossal warrior landed in front of her. She smacked hard against his leg and fell backwards.

"Stand back!" he ordered as his grip tightened around his sledgehammer.

"Stand down, Iron," the gray warrior ordered.

"Yes, Wolfram..." the colossus responded.

Garnet watched as the warrior named Steel enveloped the Centipeetle Queen's crystal in a translucence green cube.

"Catch, little brother!" Steel yelled as he tossed the cube over to the blue warrior.

The warrior caught it and tossed it back to Steel.

"Titanium, Steel, stop screwing around!" the gray warrior Wolfram ordered.

"Man, lighten up," Titanium groaned irritated. "We were just messing around."

Garnet crouched down so that she could speak with the warrior named Wolfram at eye level.

"Please hand that crystal over," she asked calmly. "It belongs with us, the Crystal Gems."

Wolfram collapsed his helmet and looked Garnet in the eye. His skin was oil black and, his eyes glowed orange like hot metal.

"Please stand back," Wolfram ordered firmly. "This artifact is now under the jurisdiction of the F.B.U.R."

"What's the F.B.U.R?" Steven asked, still completely confused as to what was happening.

"Federal Bureau of Unearthly Relations," Wolfram answered flatly. "We are tasked with protecting the people of this nation against unearthly threats and the collection of unearthly artifacts."

"But...those artifacts don't belong in non-gem hands," Pearl stated worriedly. "They belong to us."

"They belong to the Bureau now, cutie," Titanium stated coldly. "Anything we kill or we find goes to the Bureau."

"First come, first serve," Amethyst muttered bitterly.

"Oh, don't act so sour," Steel said with a smile. "We all want the same thing, to protect humanity."

Pearl couldn't believe what she was hearing. This Federal Bureau of Unearthly Relations was essentially telling them that they could do their job just as well as they had been for the last thousand years.

"What are you four?" she asked. "Are you other remnant gems?"

The warriors all looked at each other as if confused.

"Other gems?" Wolfram asked. "You three and the boy are the last gems aren't you?"

The three gems all exchange worried glances, unsure if they should answer the question.

"Not anymore," Steven stated without thinking.

Wolfram took a step back then turned to the other warriors.

"We need to get back to the Monastery," Wolfram stated. "Adler needs to know about this development."

One by one the warriors bounded to the east. But before Wolfram could leave, Garnet grabbed his arm.

"Who are you four?" she asked.

Wolfram smacked her hand away and redeployed his helmet.

"I like the name 'The Metal Alloys'. Sounds sleeker."

With that, Wolfram lept after his commrads, leaving the gems confused and feeling slightly betrayed.

"I hope this isn't what it feels like it is," Amethyst stated with worry heavy in her voice.

Garnet nodded her head. She hoped it wasn't what it appeared to be as well.

"No, she is dead," Pearl stated with her voice shaking. "We killed her, there is no way it could be..."

Steven clutched the rusty dog tags that hung loosely on his neck. He hoped it wasn't her either. Because this time, Tibbets wouldn't be there to help them.

* * *

><p>"What the Hell do you mean 'other gems'?" Adler hissed.<p>

"That's what they said, sir," Wolfram responded. "We ran into the three gems and the half breed while we terminated the creature. We spoke, and they mentioned there being more crystal gems out there."

Adler sighed and rubbed his eye lids. This was not part of the plan, but it mattered little. In his mind, the Alloys were stronger, faster, and better than the crystal gems.

"How should we deal with the Crystal gems, sir?"

"They are of no concern," Adler stated dismissively. "Don't engage in hostilities with them unless they provoke you.

"And what about the other gems?"

"If they attack you, then show no mercy, but try not to kill them. That would be a PR nightmare."

"Understood sir."


	4. Chapter 4 : The Shinar Spire

Chapter 4

* * *

><p>After their encounter with the new Centipeetle Queen and the four Alloys, the gems had returned to the temple.<br>Garnet was in her room trying to contact the remnant gems. Meanwhile, Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven had gathered in the living room.  
>They were sore, exhausted, and felt slightly humiliated.<p>

"This is unbelievable!" Pearl exclaimed bitterly. "What gives those-those charlatans the right to claim that crystal? It belongs here, in the temple."

"Well, they did beat us to the punch," Steven stated as he pulled out a barbed stinger from his back and flicked it across the room.

"That's not the point, Steven!" Pearl snapped hotly. "That Bureau of theirs couldn't possibly know what powers they are toying with!"

"I don't mean to interrupt your rant, P," Amethyst interjected. "But something tells me that this Bureau isn't the only thing we need to worry about."

Pearl crossed her arms and began to pace nervously around the room.

"You're right, Amethyst," Pearl sighed. "We have absolutely no idea who or what those 'Alloys' were. But, one thing is for sure, we know what they are capable of."

"Yeah, what were those guys?" Steven asked as he rubbed his sore arms. "They fought like us but...well...better."

Amethyst turned and smacked Steven on the back of the head.

"Better?!" she exclaimed angrily.

Amethyst felt Pearl's hand smack against the back of her head.

"Don't smack Steven!" Pearl snapped.

Pearl felt a heavy hand smack her on the back of the head.

"All of you need to calm down," Garnet ordered firmly. "Or I'll make you calm down."

With the threat of an angered Garnet present, Pearl, Amethyst, and Steven all sat like obedient children that had just been scolded by their mother.  
>Garnet couldn't blame them for their nervousness. Their pride had just been dealt a serous blow by the Alloys.<br>Garnet didn't want to admit it, but the Alloys were not amateurs. Their attacks had been well coordinated and were executed fluidly.  
>The gems hadn't had their level of coordination since Rose had passed. It was obvious that they had been trained by their handlers at the F.B.U.R.<br>This meant that there was the possibility that the Alloys only intervened in the battle because they had been ordered to.  
>Orders were different than obligation.<br>Whatever the Bureau was, it was obvious that they were government funded and somehow had the knowledge and ability to detect and contain gem related threats or activated artifacts. How that was possible was unknown to Garnet. Then there was the question of what the Alloys were.  
>They appeared to have gem like abilities, but they themselves were not gems. Wolfram, Steel, Titanium, and Iron were the names of metals.<br>They seemed far too designed to be beings of natural origin. And the way Wolfram's eyes looked were startlingly similar to the burning, hate filled eyes of the False Gem. But unlike her, Garnet didn't sense any malice in his being. Still, it bothered her deeply. Garnet was old, but not the oldest gem.  
>She knew nothing of what the Alloys could be. But she knew someone who might.<p>

"I need to speak to Turquoise," Garnet stated flatly.

"What for?" Amethyst asked.

"She is the oldest gem left, and I need her wisdom," Garnet responded as she adjusted her shades.

Steven frowned and crossed his arms.

"Good luck with that," Steven griped bitterly. "She seemed real eager to help us back with that Centipeetle."

As far as he was concerned, the remnants were a bunch of cowards.

"Steven!" Pearl snapped fiercely. "You may not like it, but she is an elder gem and is due respect!"

Steven scowled and hopped off the couch.

"This might be news to you, Pearl. But for humans, respect needs to be earned," he stated coldly.

With that, Steven made his way to the crystal gateway.

"Just, where do you think you're going?" Pearl asked angrily.

"To sleep off this wasp venom," Steven responded as the gateway opened to Rose's room. "Wake me if you need me. Or if Connie calls."

Pearl tried to form a response, but could only stammer with held back anger. She had had just about enough of Steven's new attitude.  
>Garnet could tell that Pearl was struggling with the simple fact that Steven was growing up. It was common for humans of his age to act rebellious.<br>Garnet just hoped Steven wouldn't push Pearl too far. She placed her hand on Pearl and Amethyst's shoulders.

"You two are coming with me."

"But what about Steven?" Pearl asked worriedly.

"Relax, P," Amethyst responded. "He's a big boy now. He can take care of himself."

Pearl shook her head and sighed tiredly.

_Why do they have to grow up?_ She thought bitterly.

She missed the younger, happier Steven; the one that she raised.

The three gems walked onto the warp pad and teleported out of the temple.

* * *

><p>As the light of the warp faded, the gems found themselves within a large marble room.<br>Massive marble pillars rose into the darkness and were surrounded as far as the eye could see. Glowing blue crystals floated gracefully around the pillars.  
>Pearl felt her heart flutter once it dawned on her where they were.<p>

"I read about this place!" Pearl exclaimed happily. "This is the remnants of the Shinar Spire!"

Amethyst felt a shiver run down her back. She had never seen the Shinar Spire before. The spire was said to be nearly as old as humanity itself.  
>It's existence predated the construction of the Lunar Sea Spire and any of the crystal temples. Oddly, the Shinar spire was never fully completed.<br>It remained unfinished which was odd for the ancient gems.

"Isn't this place holy ground?" Amethyst asked, feeling very overwhelmed.

The soft sound of foot steps approached the gems from behind them. They turned and saw that they belonged to Turquoise.

"To answer your question, Amethyst, yes it was," she said with a smile. "Now it is the home of the remnants of our people."

Garnet bowed her head with respect, but the old gem shook her head.

"You do not need to bow to me, Garnet," Turquoise stated softly. "Come, let us walk."

As the four walked steadily through the spire, Pearl noticed that none of the other remnants were present.

"Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian are out on a mission," Turquoise stated as though she had read Pearl's mind. "Amber is around here somewhere. You know how children can be. Always running around and hiding."

Pearl sighed wistfully. She remembered when Steven would play hid and seek when he was a toddler.

"So what is it that you need?" Turquoise asked as she steadied her pace.

Garnet didn't really know how to ask her question. It sounded foolish in her head, but she needed guidance.

"Turquoise, in your life time, have you ever faced something that had the powers of a gem... but wasn't one?"

Turquoise paused and gave Garnet a very confused look.

"What do you mean?"

"Earlier today, we responded to an attack on the city," Garnet responded.

"An attack?" Turquoise asked with surprise. "Why didn't you contact us?"

"We tried," Pearl stated. "But no one responded."

Turquoise stopped in her tracks. Even though the Shinar spire was beyond ancient, the remnants should have been alerted to the attack.

"I apologize, this place still isn't working at it's former power yet," she sighed, trying her hardest to hid the worry in her voice. "But, please continue."

"During the battle, these four warriors attacked and killed the creature," Garnet responded. "They were too fast and strong to be humans. They took the creature's crystal for themselves."

"They took it?" Turquoise stated with shock. "For what reason?"

"The warriors stated that the artifact belonged to a Federal Bureau of Unearthly Relations," Garnet responded flatly. "A human government organization."

"Oh, dear..." Turquoise gasped softly. "Rose feared something like this would happen at some point."

"What do you mean?" Amethyst asked.

Turquoise pulled her shawl over her shoulders as if she was trying to comfort herself.

"Rose feared that if relations with the human powers were to sour, then they would try to create a human made answer to the threats we are responsible for."

"But, how could they do that?" Pearl asked, feeling betrayed. "After all we have sacrificed for them, this is how they repay us?"

"They are just scared," Turquoise responded. "How would you act if something were to happen to Steven? That's how the humans are thinking. They are simply trying to protect what they hold dear. But these warriors you spoke of, you say that they had gem-like powers, but were not gems themselves?"

"That's right," Garnet stated. "Have you ever seen something like them?"

Turquoise was silent as she thought. The group stopped walking once they reached an area of the spire with a huge crack in the wall and floor.  
>Sunlight shown through the crack in the wall, and a small stream babbled through the crack in the floor.<br>Turquoise sat down next to the stream and motioned for the gems to do the same. She closed her eyes and let the cool water flow through her weathered hands.  
>She had lived countless winters and had seen many strange and unexplainable things. But what the gems were describing sounded frighteningly familiar.<br>For she had only seen it seventy-two years ago.

"Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl..." Turquoise spoke in a somber tone. "What you faced sounds like man-made gems."

The gem's blood ran cold as what Turquoise said began to fully sink in. The last time someone tried to make a man-made gem warrior, it created the horror that was Geissel; the False gem. Pearl felt herself start to shake uncontrollably. Out of all of the threats the crystal gems had faced, Geissel managed to do what nothing else could. She broke them, maimed them, and could have killed them, or worse. If what Turquoise said was true, then their were possibly four new False gems free to roam the planet.

"T-that's not possible," Pearl stammered as she started to panic. "We destroyed her! She's dead! T-there can't be more of her...right?"

Turquoise took Pearl's hand and held it comfortingly. She could see the damage the False gem had caused her was still haunting the poor gem.

"I wish I had a better answer," Turquoise sighed sadly. "Maybe if I had seen them for myself, I would have a better answer."

The four gems sat with a nearly overwhelming dread lingering over them.  
>If there was the possibility of more monsters like Geissel, then the gems would be in grave danger.<br>If one was enough to nearly wipe them off the face of the planet, then what could four be capable of?

The gems were broken from their grim thoughts by the soft pitter-patter of tiny foot steps.

"Granny Turquoise!" the young Amber cried out.

Turquoise stood up and rushed towards the young gem.

"What is it young one?"

"Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian are in trouble!"

* * *

><p><em>*What is going to happen to the crystal gems? What is the Bureau hiding? What are the Alloys truly planning? Find out next chapter* <em>

_P.S: Free cookie for those who can figure out what the Shinar Spire is related to._


	5. Chapter 5: Remnants and Alloys

Chapter 5

* * *

><p>The three Remnant gems Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian had been ordered by Turquoise to retrieve an activated gem artifact that had appeared in the Alaskan wilderness. Everything had been going smoothly for the three Remnants. After decades of hiding, it felt great to finally go on missions again.<br>Of course they missed their former squad mates. They all had been leaders of a crystal temple before the rise of the False gem.  
>Now they were all back to being the ones who took the orders rather than the ones that gave them. It was a big adjustment for them.<br>Even though they were all fellow warriors, they felt very alone, and the bitter Alaskan winds didn't help.

"Hey, Princess!" Pounamu shouted at Azurite. "How much farther? I'm freezing over here!"

Azurite scowled and shot a glare back at the tattooed gem.

"_Qu'y a-t-il ?_" she asked mockingly. "Don't like the cold?"

"Please, stop your constant bickering," Carnelian begged, she had grown tired of listing to the two of them. "The sooner we get to the artifact, the sooner we can leave."

The three Remnants marched through the blinding snow to where the artifact was supposed to be. The artifact they were looking for was called an Oasis Stone.  
>Oasis Stones were used by the ancient gems to provide temples in barren lands with a more comfortable environment.<br>They stopped using them once they began to change the planet's ecosystem. But an Oasis stone was just what Shinar Spire needed.  
>If it was going to be the home to the last remnants of their society, then it needed to feel like a home, and less like an ancient spire.<br>In the distance, the three Remnants could see the ruins of a crystal temple, completely untouched by the snow and cold.

"There, the Oasis stone should be within the ruins!" Carnelian stated as she pointed towards the temple.

"Finally, lets grab it and get out of this cold!" Pounamu responded as she rushed ahead of the group.

"Pounamu, please wait for us!" Carnelian shouted as she ran after the green gem with Azurite close behind her.

The Remnants had hoped for an easy retrieval mission. But what they found once they reached the temple, was not what they had expected.  
>Digging through the temple ruins were the four Alloys.<br>Wolfram was on the ground shouting orders to the other three.  
>Iron was breaking through the already crumbling walls with his sledgehammer while the twins Steel and Titanium scoured the upper levels.<br>Like the Remnants, the F.B.U.R had their sights set on the Oasis stone as well and had ordered the Alloys to retrieve it.  
>Neither the Remnants nor the Alloys knew each other, and that fact alone was a recipe for disaster.<p>

"What the Hell do you think you're doing?!" Pounamu shouted angrily.

Wolfram spun around and with a red flash, summoned his twin cavalry sabers. At the sight of the three unknown gems approaching, the three other Alloys gathered with their leader.

"Identify yourselves!" Wolfram ordered firmly.

Being the more sensible of the three Remnants, Carnelian approached with her hands raised non-threateningly.

"My name is Carnelian," she stated calmly. "These two are my friends Pounamu and Azurite."

"You think those three are the other gems those four spoke about?" Titanium whispered to Wolfram. "I mean, they sure look like a bunch of gems."

Wolfram agreed, the Alloys were bound to bump into the Remnants sooner or later. Still, his orders were final; retrieve the stone and return to the Monastery.

"State your business," Wolfram ordered.

Carnelian smiled nervously. At least the four warriors were civil enough for conversation.

"You see, we-"

"We came to take the Oasis Stone!" Pounamu burst loudly, still angered by the fact that the Alloys were desecrating the ruins. "So hand it over!"

"Pounamu, please, lets not-"

"The Oasis stone is now under the jurisdiction of the F.B.U.R." Wolfram responded firmly. "I'm going to have to ask you three to vacate the area."

Pounamu's temper was about to boil over. She had not just walked through miles of snow just to be denied what she was ordered to retrieve.  
>The angered gem walked up to Wolfram and looked him in the face.<p>

"Listen, punk. I don't care who or what you are or what the F.B.U.R. is. But those ruins, and everything inside belong to the crystal gems!" Pounamu growled threateningly.

Wolfram stood firm, unthreatened by the gem that bared her teeth inches away from his helmet visor.

"Ma'am, you and your friends need to stand back."

"Or, what?" Pounamu asked as if challenging him.

"We make you stand back," Steel hissed as he raised his clawed gauntlet.

Carnelian was beginning to panic. She didn't want the two groups to start a fight.

"Please, there is no need to fight. We all just need to calm down and talk this over!"

Azurite had had enough of this foolishness. The time for words was over, it was time for action.

"C'est ridicule!" she snapped hotly. "The Oasis stone belongs to us! Let us take it and be done with this idiocy!"

Pounamu flashed a wicked smile and regrouped with Azurite.

"For once you're speaking my language!"

Pounamu flared her tongue and summoned her Taiaha staff. Azurite drew her rapier, and gave the Alloys a fencer's salute.  
>Titanium and Steel both smiled eagerly. The two had never fought gems before, and were more than willing to find out what if felt like.<br>Titanium's chain slid loosely down his arm. He began to spin the hooked chain as he prepared for battle.

"I'll take the one with the sword," he stated to his brother. "I like her accent."

"Good, that means I get the tattooed fashion nightmare," Steel responded with a smirk as he slowly raked his claws along one of the temple pillars, leaving three deep gashed in the stone. "Girl's wardrobe is two-hundred years out of date."

Pounamu growled and tightened her grip on her Taiaha. She was looking forward to adding another victory tattoo on her face.  
>Without warning the two Remnants charged the two Alloys. With speeds matching that of the gems, Titanium and Steel both bolted towards the Remnants.<br>Their weapons drawn and teeth bared, the four warriors were quickly within striking distance.  
>But before either side could land the first strike, a blue light washed over them. The two Remnants and the twin Alloys froze in mid-charge.<br>Wolfram and Iron turned behind them and saw Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Turquoise walking out from the inner temple ruins.  
>Wolfram could tell that Turquoise was the gem responsible for intervening in the battle.<p>

"Identify yourself," he ordered sternly.

Garnet, Amethyst, and Pearl all stood between Wolfram and Turquoise, but she waved them away.

"I apologize for how some of my gems have acted," Turquoise stated as she shot a piercing glare at Pounamu and Azurite. "It appears that seventy-two years below the surface has made them forget what it means to be civil."

Turquoise smiled and held out her hand.

"My name is Turquoise," she said kindly.

Wolfram was hesitant, but decided it would be rude not to at least shake the old gems hand. Compared to the other gems he had encountered, she seemed far more reasonable.

"I am Wolfram, leader of the Alloys," he stated through his helmet. "The one standing behind me is Iron, and the two you see floating over there are Titanium and Steel. They are my comrades."

Turquoise felt a sharp tingling sensation run through her body. Their names did not reveal full memories like they should have.  
>Instead she only saw fragments of memories. Memories of pain, confusion, anger, then sudden compliance.<br>From the hazy images and emotions, she could determine only one thing; the Alloys were not gems, not even close.  
>She saw blood pouring alongside liquid metal and a colorless aura of gem magic intertwining all three together.<br>They were unnatural. She saw laboratories, syringes, arcane machines, and ancient gem hieroglyphics.  
>All of it was all too familiar, and it frightened Turquoise. She released Wolfram's hand, still wearing the same kind smile.<p>

"Wolfram, that's a lovely name."

The Alloy took a step away from the gem.

"Thank you, now release my brothers and vacate the area," he stated firmly. "This area is now under the jurisdiction of the F.B.U.R."

Pearl was livid at the way Wolfram spoke to Turquoise. He had no authority to order her around.

"Why you insolent-"

"Enough, Pearl," Turquoise ordered sternly.

Turquoise waved her prayer stick and released the twin Alloys.

"Turquoise, what are you doing?!" Pounamu asked in disbelief. "These punks are desecrating these ruins, and you're just gonna let them go free?!"

"Oh-ho-ho, looks like Tatts is mad," Titanium mocked as he helped his brother off the ground.

"Steel, Titanium, stand down," Wolfram ordered.

He then turned back to Turquoise.

"You want something from us, don't you?"

"Oh, don't say it like that, dearie," Turquoise responded with a sly smile. "Simply listen to what an old woman has to say."

Wolfram crossed his arms, he was running out of patience.

"Do you have a request or a complaint?" he asked very uniformly.

"A request, please," Turquoise responded kindly.

"State your request."

Turquoise looked over at the Remnants, then the Alloys, and finally the three gems.  
>The crystal forces on earth had faded, and desperately needed help protecting their new home.<br>While they were not bound to the crystal gem oath, the Alloys did appear to have the same goal; to protect humanity.  
>The last thing the gems needed were more enemies. If anything, the Alloys could make for very powerful allies.<br>All Turquoise needed to do was negotiate with the Alloys. Hopefully the Bureau they worked for would be open for a council with them.  
>If the gems and the Bureau could work an agreement out of some kind, then surly both sides would benefit from the deal.<br>Yes, this is what Turquoise knew needed to be done. There was no need for hostilities between the two, and such an agreement could earn back the human's trust.

"I wish to propose an agreement between the crystal gems and the Bureau," Turquoise stated calmly. "I believe that we can both benefit from each other if we come to terms and talk things over."

"Are you serious?!" Pounamu exclaimed angrily. "How can their Bureau possibly help us?!"

"Tatts has a point boss," Titanium stated. "Besides, why should the Bureau agree to anything these relics offer?

Wolfram rested his chin on his hand and pondered on the issue.  
>On one hand, the crystal gems were not their enemy and they did have the same wish to protect humanity.<br>On the other hand, the Alloys only answered to the F.B.U.R, and the Bureau was very secretive.  
>The only other organizations that had power over the Bureau was the CIA or in extreme cases, the President himself.<br>To ask the Bureau for peace talks meant a lot of paper work and crawling through a web of bureaucracy.  
>But then again, that's what Adler was for.<br>While the Alloys did take orders from him, he was more of a messenger from the higher ups.  
>Either way, working an agreement out with the gems wasn't Wolfram's problem. He honestly found the idea intriguing.<p>

"We must discuss this with the Bureau before we can make any kind of agreements," Wolfram stated flatly. "Personally, I'm not apposed to an agreement between us. But the decision is not mine to make."

Turquoise smiled warmly, she could tell he was speaking the truth.

"I hope that we may work together in protecting this planet," she stated happily. "But I understand if your Bureau needs time."

Turquoise waved the three Remnants over to her. As Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian walked past the Alloys, Pounamu growled threateningly.

"Catch ya later, Tatts," Titanium mocked as the two briefly locked eyes. The three Remnants stepped onto the warp pad and teleported back to the Shinar Spire with Pounamu flipping the bird as she warped.

* * *

><p>Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Turquoise lingered and observed the Alloys continue with their operation. Pearl thought it was interesting how the Alloys worked.<br>Iron was obviously the brute force of the group. In that respect, he was like Garnet. But he seemed content with following orders rather than giving them.  
>Titanium acted more like Amethyst than even she wanted to admit. He was cocky, vulgar, and preferred a weapon with a long reach.<br>His older brother Steel on the other hand seemed cold and self-absorbed. Yet Pearl had to admit, Steel seemed to match her in speed and grace.  
>But comparing the two was like comparing a ballerina to a scalpel.<br>While his brothers were easily readable, Wolfram was like a stone wall. His emotions and body language was unreadable, and his voice was flat yet firm.  
>He watched over the Alloys as they retrieved the Oasis stone from the ruins.<p>

"Found it, boss!" Titanium exclaimed as he enveloped the stone.

"Alright, lets head back to the Monastery. We need to tell Adler bout this proposed agreement," Wolfram stated as the Alloys gathered around him.

They drove long metal poles into a square around them and stood close together.

"I hope we can work things out between us," Pearl stated kindly.

Wolfram nodded his head

"Likewise."

Suddenly, the four poles extended ten feet into the air. They began to spark and glow. With a loud bang, a pillar of light enveloped the Alloys.  
>Once the light faded, they were gone. The four gems stood stunned by what they just witnessed.<br>The Alloys had portable warp technology.

"Well, what happens now?" Amethyst asked.

Turquoise smiled and turned to the purple gem

"Now we wait and hope for the best."

* * *

><p>"They want to arrange some kind of treaty with the Bureau?" Adler asked.<p>

"That's what they told us," Wolfram stated flatly.

Adler ran his tongue across his teeth as he thought.

"What are their terms?"

"They gave no terms, but most likely will have some should we agree to hold a council with them," Wolfram stated.

Adler felt uneasy. But if the gems wanted peace between themselves and the Alloys, then it proved to him (in his own mind anyway) that they felt threatened by the Alloys.

"Fascinating," Adler hissed. "What do you think?"

"I think that working out an agreement could work to our favor," Wolfram stated flatly. "The gems are no threat to us anyway. What's the harm in humoring them?"

Adler chuckled coldly.

"You're starting to sound like your mother."


	6. Chapter 6: Blackout

Chapter 6

* * *

><p>Steven was standing out on the beach gazing out over the ocean. The moon's light shimmered off the water's surface like diamonds.<br>The air felt cool and smelt of sea salt. He felt peaceful, something he hadn't felt in a while. Steven laid down on the beach and let the soft sand cradle him.  
>Steven then felt warm hands grasping his own. Laying on both sides of him was Connie and Pearl.<br>Sitting along the beach next to them was Garnet, Amethyst, and Greg. Steven sighed happily, everyone he ever cared about was with him.  
>He felt happy, it was like he was a kid again. When life was so much simpler. Before he knew what how badly the world needed the gems.<br>Before he knew what war was.

"I love you guys."

"We love you too, Steven..."

Suddenly, an unbelievably bright light flashed behind him. It was white like magnesium, and it burnt his skin.  
>Loud sirens began to blare as the sky turned a dull orange. Steven turned around and dropped to his knees in horror.<br>Where Beach City once stood rose a massive mushroom cloud.  
>Buildings, cars, the earth itself was vaporized as the hellish fire ball spread out in all directions.<p>

"Guys, we gotta get out of-"

They were gone. What took the place of his friends and loved ones were charred black blast shadows.

Fire, smoke, people burning alive, this was hell, and it had been unleashed.  
>Then he saw her, the one he prayed he never would see again.<br>Standing in the center of the mushroom cloud was Geissel, the False gem.

"I love you, Steven," she hissed wickedly as everything went white.

* * *

><p>Steven awoke with a jolt. His body was covered in cold sweat and his heart was racing.<br>After taking a moment to collect himself, Steven realized that he was still in Rose's room.

"Stupid wasp poison," groaned as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Tired and shaken, Steven opened the gateway and waked into the temple. To his surprise, the temple was empty. He checked his watch.  
>It was six o'clock at night and the gems were still not back.<p>

"Hmmm... wonder what Connie is up to."

He hadn't seen her in two weeks because of how busy he had been. After some thought, he decided to giver her a call.  
>Connie's parents were out of town, so she had no curfew, which was awesome. He whipped out his phone and speed dialed her number.<br>After a few rings, she answered.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Connie," Steven answered eagerly. "You wanna come over and hang out?"

"It's kind of late," Connie stated. "Wont the gems not want me there?"

"Nope, the gems aren't here," Steven answered with a sly smile. "We'll have the whole temple to ourselves."

"Really, that's great," Connie exclaimed happily. "Cuz' I just bought a copy of Dogcopter Four!"

"Awesome, I'll get the snacks and stuff ready," Steven responded jovially. "See you in a bit."

Steven felt giddy, that childish 'I could get in trouble' kind of giddy. Connie had never been over at the temple this late without the gems being present before.  
>Usually, Pearl or Garnet would forbid it. But they weren't home. Who knows what could happen? The two might get to tier two; smooching and cuddling.<br>The two had become very, very close, but had decided to take things slowly. It wasn't a bad idea, they were still only sixteen after all, and God knows what their parents or, God forbid, Pearl would do if they were caught taking things too far.

* * *

><p>After waiting for what felt like an eternity, Steven heard the doorbell ring. When he opened the door, he was greeted by Connie's smiling face.<p>

"Hi, Steven," she squealed happily as she hugged him tightly.

"Hi, Connie," Steven responded warmly. "It's been too long."

"I know, we've both been so busy lately," Connie exclaimed as she nuzzled Steven softly. "But now we finally can have some time together."

"With no gems to interrupt us," Steven added with a sly smile.

Connie giggled happily. It felt like they were breaking some kind of rule. An immature thought, yes; but it made the whole act all the more exciting.

"Well, lets bust out the popcorn and start this thing."

* * *

><p>Connie and Steven sat snugly next to each other. The temple lights were dimmed down so that they could still watch the movie without tripping if they needed to use the bathroom. Lion laid curled up on the floor like a big pink house cat.<br>The two stared with wide eyes at the action packed, explosion filled movie and munched on popcorn. Steven and Connie's little date was going pretty well.  
>No interruptions, no worries, and nothing to come between the young couple.<br>As the movie progressed, Steven couldn't help but feel a bit on edge. Sure Connie was with him and was discreetly cuddling up to him, but something felt off.  
>He couldn't put his finger on it, but it felt as though something was about to go down.<br>He was broken from his thoughts by the feeling of Connie's warmth pressing up against him.  
>While she was transfixed on the movie, Steven eyed her discreetly. Her body was filling out nicely; much better than he felt his own was anyway.<br>He couldn't help but notice her small but distinct curves. He thought it was cute that she still wore her lenseless glasses frames.  
>Thanks to Steven's healing backwash, Connie no longer needed the glasses to see clearly.<p>

Slowly, Steven reached his arm around her shoulder. She gave him a playful smile.

"That's the oldest trick in the book," she giggled as she turned her body towards his.

Connie playfully crept her hands up Steven's chest, pushing her body against his as she did so. Her soft skin gently caressed against his.  
>Steven's heart was pounding, as was Connie's. He began to plant small kisses on her neck which made her squeal happily.<br>Both began to pant heavily as the two young lovers began to explore the others body.  
>Connie locked eyes with Steven's. Her brown unobstructed eyes were filled with longing and desire. Those dark brown eyes always made his heart melt like butter. That did it, Steven could hold back no longer. With his hands pressing her into him, Steven gave her a deep, passionate kiss. A kiss that Connie returned in full.<br>He felt her tongue play with his, soft moans escaping from both of them. Connie broke away from the wet kiss and rested her forehead against Steven's.

"I love you, Steven," she panted heavily, her hands locked firmly with his.

"I love you too, Connie," Steven panted as he held her closely. "I love you so-"

Suddenly, a noise that sounded like a dull roar of thunder swept over the temple. With a loud pop, the T.V shut off.  
>The lights flickered out and the temple sank into darkness.<p>

"What's going on?" Connie asked, startled by the loud noise. "What happened to the lights?"

"I have no idea," Steven answered, just as confused as Connie. "Let's go see what's up."

Connie and Steven both stood up off of the couch and made their way to the patio. It wasn't just the temple that was without power, it was the whole city.

"Looks like a blackout," Steven grumbled, irritated at how quickly the mood had been ruined.

He felt Connie tap him on the shoulder.

"Steven... I don't think this is just a blackout," she stated worriedly. "My phone wont turn on."

Steven whipped out his phone. It too was dead. He sighed and leaned on the hand rail and looked over the city.  
>No street lights, no house lights, not even any cars. So much for their movie night.<p>

"I'm sure the gems will know what's up." he stated flatly.

As the two stood on the patio, an awkward silence fell between the two. Just moments ago, they had been panting and grabbing each other in feverous lust.  
>The blackout gave them something they didn't know they needed; time to think.<p>

"Listen...Connie," Steven stated nervously. "Back there...what we were doing..."

"Yes?" Connie asked, equally as nervous.

"Do you think that...I don't know...we seemed to be going too...fast?"

She was ashamed to admit it, but he was right. The most either of them expected to get was some snuggling and maybe a few kisses.  
>But what they were doing was a few steps from going all the way. And neither of them knew if they were emotionally ready for that level of intimacy.<br>They still had a lot of growing up to do before they would be ready for that.

"You're right," Connie said with a penitent expression. "I'm sorry if I was pushing you too far."

"No, I should be the sorry one," Steven sighed. "I made the first move."

Connie took Steven's hand and held it tenderly.

"Lets be sorry together, alright?" she cooed softly.

Steven nuzzled his forehead against hers.

"I meant what I said earlier," he whispered in her ear. " I do love you, Connie."

She looked up into Steven's eyes and gave him a soft kiss.

"I love you too."

The power did not come back on that night, and after waiting for it for a few hours, Steven and Connie grew tired.  
>After deciding it was too dangerous for Connie to be home alone, Steven offered her to spend the night.<br>Connie would sleep on the couch, and Steven would use Lion as a pillow on the floor. Once the two lovers finally fell asleep, they did so holding hands.  
>The love they shared together burned as brightly as ever, even as the city sat in darkness.<p>

* * *

><p>"What the hell is going on?!" Adler demanded. "Why are our systems down?!"<p>

"Sir, it's not just the Monastery. The whole city has gone dark."

"How long until our back up power kicks in?" Adler hissed bitterly.

"Systems will be back up in thirty minutes."

"Make it twenty!" Adler boomed. "This is unacceptable!"

Standing behind Adler were the four Alloys. They were expecting to be deployed.

"Orders, Sir?" Wolfram asked.

"Split up and patrol the city," Adler ordered. "Keep on high alert."

Titanium cracked his knuckles, and summoned his chain and hook.

"So much for negotiations with those gems," he said with a hint of disappointment. "I was really hoping one of them would try to start a brawl."

"You are not to fight them unless provoked!" Adler snapped. " And as far as negotiations go, they are still on the table. Let's just hope this blackout is nothing more than a simple, non-gem related blackout."

"Alright, lets roll Alloys!" Wolfram ordered.

As the Alloys moved to exit the room, Adler stopped Wolfram.

"Be ready for anything. This whole thing feels like a prelude to something bigger."

He paused and blinked his eyes; they were stinging terribly as a dull pink glow shown off of them.

"Much bigger."


	7. Chapter 7: Burning Sands

Chapter 7

* * *

><p>Lion suddenly arose from his slumber, jolting Steven awake in the process. Before he could make sense of where he was, a bright light stung his eyes.<br>The light was the familiar flash of the warp pad.

"Steven, we're back!" Amethyst hollered obnoxiously.

"Sorry we were gone so long," Pearl said with a tired tone. "We had a lot to catch the Remnants up on, and...why is it so dark and hot in here?"

Amethyst peeked over the couch and found the still slumbering Connie.

"Steven, getting your funky flow on or what?!" Amethyst laughed loudly, rousting Connie awake.

"Huh, what's going on? Is the power back on?" Connie asked in a daze.

"Steven...what is Connie doing here?" Pearl asked inquisitively.

"It's not what it looks like!" Steven exclaimed, raising his hands in defense. "Connie came over to watch a movie, but then the power went out. I thought it would be too dangerous for us to leave the temple, so I asked her to sleep over here. Right, Connie?"

"Yeah, we just watched a movie. I slept on the couch and Steven slept on Lion," Connie stammered nervously.

"W-we didn't do anything bad, honest," Steven stated, his face bright red as he remembered how far they had nearly gone.

Pearl squinted her eyes accusingly. Her maternal instincts told her that they were both lying.  
>She knew that both Steven and Connie cared deeply for the other, but worried if they could tell the difference between love and raging hormones.<p>

"They're telling the truth," Garnet stated flatly.

"How can you tell?" Amethyst asked, trying her hardest not to make a rude joke.

"Look at their eyes," Garnet answered.

Amethyst pressed Connie and Steven's faces next to each other and looked them both in the eyes.

"What about em'?"

"They still have that clueless 'nobody is home' look to them," Garnet answered with a sly smile.

Amethyst nearly fell over laughing. Pearl wasn't amused, but Garnet didn't care.  
>Even though Garnet's eyes could see every drool stain and kiss mark, she knew the two hadn't done anything they weren't ready for. Still, she understood Pearl's concerns. The last time a crystal gem and a human ever "fused" it ended with Rose's death.<p>

"Alright, Pearl, help me try to get the power back up," Garnet ordered. "Amethyst, you watch over Steven and Connie."

* * *

><p>Three hours passed as Garnet and Pearl tried to get the power running in the temple. No lights, not radios, no cell phones, and no air conditioning.<br>As the brutal July sun beat down onto the temple, everyone began to feel the heat. The temple felt like an oven and was only getting hotter.  
>Garnet was used to the heat, so it didn't bother her.<br>Pearl dealt with it the best she could, by keeping herself busy cleaning and organizing random areas of the temple.  
>Amethyst was the first one to snap.<p>

"Ahug! It's so flippin' hot!" she groaned loudly as she threw open the patio door. She found little relief from the salty sea breeze, but it was enough to keep her from completely losing her mind.

"Ahh...much better," she sighed as she opened her arms and shut her eyes.

When she opened them, she spotted something odd. Out on the ocean was a large cargo ship that wasn't there a second ago.  
>Even stranger was that a thick fog was trailing behind the ship.<p>

"What the...hey guys, come check this out!"

Garnet, Pearl, Steven, and Connie all ran out to the patio.

"What's wrong?" Pearl asked.

"Look, see that ship?" Amethyst asked as she pointed it out.

"What about it?" Garnet asked flatly.

"It wasn't there a second ago," Amethyst stated worriedly. "It's like it appeared out of nowhere."

Pearl rolled her eyes.

"Amethyst, I think the sun has finally gotten to-"

Pearl stopped mid-sentence as a second cargo ship appeared. It was like it had sailed through an invisible veil. It slowly sailed out of the fog like a phantom.

"What...?" Pearl stated in confusion.

Not a second later, a third cargo ship appeared followed shortly by a fourth. Each ship had a symbol of a red and gold fist with an eye glaring out of the wrist.

"Uhh...guys, that's not normal, is it?" Steven asked nervously.

"Weird..." Connie stated with intrigue. "Those are old Soviet cargo ships. Look at the rust on them."

Slowly, the fog that the ships were trailing rolled out over the city. The sun was dimmed and the air suddenly felt colder.

"We should get down to the coast line," Garnet stated. "This doesn't feel right."

* * *

><p>By the time the gems had made it to the coast, the four cargo ships slammed onto the shallow waters and beached themselves.<br>As the ships groaned and rattled in place, the gems readied their weapons. It was strange, usually there would be news helicopters.  
>But it was now obvious that the blackout was no simple blackout. Garnet was worried, if this was a matter that was strictly between humans, then the gems technically could do nothing except get people to safety. But if the blackout was not just isolated to Beach City, then it was possible that not even the U.S government knew about the cargo ships. None of this sat well with Garnet.<p>

The beach suddenly began to echo with a loud whirling noise. They were coming from aft ends of the ships.  
>Slowly ascending above the cargo ships rose several Mi-24 Hind gunships.<br>Without warning, the gunships fired their nose mounted 12.7mm auto cannons at the four gems.  
>Luckily, the gems managed to disperse before the gunships could tear them apart. Like great vultures of metal, the Hinds circled over the beach and began to fire rockets into the city.<p>

"We need to get back to the temple!" Garnet shouted over the roar of the gunship's rotors. "It must be protected!"

"What about the city?!" Steven shouted. "We have to do something!"

"I'm sorry, but this fight isn't ours to fight!" Garnet stated firmly.

Steven scowled and shook his head.

"Screw that!"

He then bolted down towards the beach, head strong and full of adrenalin. Pearl ran after him, hoping she could stop him before it was too late.

"Steven, stop!" she ordered as she grabbed him. "We need to get back to the-"

Suddenly, the cargo ship's hulls slammed open. Out of the cargo ships thundered a collective war cry.

"For the H.L.A!"

Hundreds of heavily armed militants charged out and ran towards the city, their Kalashnikovs roaring and their bayonets gleaming.

Pearl grabbed Steven and shielded him from the rushing wall of gunfire and bayonets.  
>But within the blink of an eye, and orange flash swept across the first line of militants and decapitated them.<br>The unknown invaders began to fall to pieces, literally. Arms, legs, heads, all fell to the ground, staining the sand red with blood.  
>Before they had time to make sense of what was happening, Pearl and Steven were grabbed and were rushed back towards the temple.<br>The one who got them away from the battle was none other than Wolfram.

"Stay here," he ordered, summoning his sabers with a red flash of light. "This is a matter of national security."

Without another word, Wolfram lept back towards the invasion. Suddenly, one of the gunships began to struggle to stay in the air.  
>It's tail was being constricted by a metal chain. The gems looked down an saw Titanium pulling the gunship out of the sky.<p>

"Get your commie ass down from there!" he cackled coldly as the yanked the gunship's tail off.

The gunship spiraled right into the side of the Fish Stew Pizza sign.

"Oops..."

As if things couldn't get worse, out of the cargo ships rolled out several T-72 tanks, each bearing the mark of the red fist and eye.  
>The tanks began to fire at Wolfram and Steel, forcing them back slowly. But then like a meteor, Iron fell from the sky and slammed his sledgehammer into the tank leading the charge. The tank's hull was crushed like an empty soda can.<p>

"I broke your toy..." Iron growled as he flipped the tank's burning carcass onto a cluster of militants, their bullets bouncing off his armor harmlessly.

Seeing that things were falling apart on the ground, the four remaining gunships began to fly to the east of the city. Steel noticed this and smiled.

"Iron, be a dear and toss me," he asked playfully.

Iron lifted Steel and tossed him like a javelin. As he flew through the air, Steel readied his claws. Like a hot scalpel, Steel sliced a long gash along the side of the first gunship. As the first one fell in sheets of flame, Steel lept over to the second one and pulled the pilot out of the cockpit and threw him up into the gunships rotors, killing the pilot in a spray of blood as the rotor blades chopped him to pieces. Steel reached into the gunship and steered it into the third gunship.  
>With both gunships falling to the ground, Steel lept to the fourth and final gunship. He sliced through the spinning rotors of the gunship and lept off as it hurtled to the ground.<p>

"Just like in the training video," Steel said with a smile as the gunships burned.

The gems watched with a mixture of awe and terror as the Alloys carved through the unknown invading force. It was then that Steven understood why gems never fought in human battles, the battle would turn into a massacre.

"Th-they're just slaughtering them!" Pearl exclaimed horrified. "Do they know no mercy?!"

"Mercy has no place in battle," an unnervingly calm voice responded.

The four gems turned around an saw an old man watching the battle through a pair of binoculars.

"Sir, you should get somewhere safe," Garnet stated firmly.

"Blödsinn!" the old man hissed. "I'm here to watch the Alloys work."

The old man began to laugh as the battle began to become desperate for the invaders.

"Dummkopfs, look how they continue to fight. Idiots!"

The gems were disturbed by the old man's amusement. He seemed to relish in the slaughter, bouncing his knee like a giddy child.

"That's right," he hissed. "Drive them back into the sea!"

* * *

><p>On the beach, the last of the invaders were quickly being decimated. After a few minutes of gunfire and flashing metal, the battle was over.<br>With their weapons dripping with blood, the Alloys stood triumphant.

"Time, ten minutes and thirty four seconds!"

A terrifying silence fell over the beach as the Alloys stood above the carnage they had created. The old man began to clap and applaud jovially.

"Good show, boys!" he shouted down towards the Alloys. "Those bastards never stood a chance!"

Pearl was sickened by the old man's lack of humanity.

"Who are you?" she asked with a tremble in her voice.

The man stopped and turned to face her and the rest of the gems.

"Ah, yes, the Crystal Gems," he said with an amused tone. "Don't you have an ocean to steal or whatever it is you gems do in your spare time?"

His voice, his smile, his scent, whatever it was, it made Garnet snap. With a flash of light, she summoned her gantlets. Before she could even raise her fists, a chain wrapped around her waist and pulled her to the ground. Suddenly the gems were surrounded by the Alloys, their weapons drawn.

"Lower your weapons, boys," the man ordered calmly. "She didn't mean it..."

"Yes sir."

The Alloys lowered their weapons and stood beside the old man. Pearl was dark blue with anger. How dare they threaten them.

"You never answered my question," she stated coldly.

The old man chuckled as if embarrassed.

"Oh, yes, how silly of me," he stated. "You three beautiful ladies, and...you boy, may call me Professor Adler Von Schlachten the Third."

He paused as he pressed his glasses up his nose.

"Or, you may call me Adler, founder of the F.B.U.R and the creator of these four proud warriors you see before you."

"You created them?" Amethyst asked. "How?"

"That's classified information," Adler hissed. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to find out what I can about these invaders of American soil."

As Adler raised his hand to order the Alloys, a loud siren began to blare from the cargo ships.

Immediately, the Alloys doubled over in pain. They cried out and screamed as an intense burning pain tore through their stomachs.

"What's wrong? Boys, answer me?!" Adler ordered in a panic.

"Guys...something is happening!" Steven exclaimed as he pointed down at the beach.

* * *

><p>The mounds of bodies began to smoke...and move.<br>The bodies of the invaders began to writhe and flail wildly.  
>Their skin began to burn off to reveal a dark gray shell.<br>Their eyes melted into glowing orange pits.  
>Their teeth grew and their fingers warped into long claws.<br>Molten metal dripped off of their bodies and smoke rose off of them.  
>Pearl felt the invisible fires of radiation scorch the beach as the creatures arose.<br>One by one, the slain invaders transformed into the hellish creatures.

The gem's blood all ran cold. They knew what those creatures were, but never though they would ever be seen again.  
>They should have all been killed, taken to the void once their master died.<p>

"No...it-it can't be," Pearl stammered with pure terror.

The creatures all gave a loud wailing cry and began to charge the temple.

"Burners!"


	8. Chapter 8 : Baptism of Battle

Chapter 8

* * *

><p>Like a horrible nightmare, the Burners wailed and gnashed their teeth and exhaled gouts of irradiated dust. Except this was no nightmare, this was now and real.<br>The mindless minions of the False Gem had returned to scar the world once more.  
>Hundreds strong, and filled with an untamable hunger for the lives of others, the hellish monsters charged forward towards the city.<br>They had only one goal; burn everything in sight.

"They must not reach the city!" Garnet exclaimed as she summoned her gauntlets. "Stop them at all costs!"

With their weapons drawn, the gems lept down towards the oncoming horde.  
>Garnet slammed her fists into the ground and created a shock wave that scattered the creatures around her like rag dolls.<br>Steven flung his shield like discus and cleaved through a few of the Burners before the shield returned.  
>Amethyst and Pearl fought back to back as the Burners encircled them.<br>Using her whip, Amethyst would rip the heads off of the creatures from a safe distance while Pearl dealt with those that got in too close.  
>This was not the first time they had fought the creatures before, so they knew the most efficient way of killing them. But there was something off about these Burners. They seemed to be moving with a stronger sense of self preservation than the previous generations. The gems paid no mind to it.<br>A decision that they would later regret.

* * *

><p>Adler watched as the gems fought the horde of Burners with everything they had. Adler had to admit, the gems were as impressive as ever.<br>He had seen classified reports of these creatures from the 1991 "Burner" incident. They were strong, fast, and unpredictable.  
>It was like they were designed to cause the greatest loss of life in the shortest amount of time.<br>He wondered how much longer the gems would be able to last against this newer breed.

"Boys, get up!" Adler ordered at the agonized Alloys.

The Alloys tried to stand, but the pain in their stomachs was too intense. It felt like something was burning its way out of them.  
>Whatever was happening to them, the sirens from the cargo ships seemed to be causing it.<p>

"Wówaš'ake," a voice whispered.

Suddenly, a blue light washed over the four Alloys like falling water. Slowly the Alloys regained their strength and felt the pain become dulled.  
>Adler turned to find Turquoise, Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian rushing from the temple.<br>Turquoise had her prayer stick shimmering with mystical energies.

"Are you four alright?" she asked with concern in her voice.

The Alloys stood dizzily and off kilter.

"Yes...we appear to be so," Wolfram stated in his stoic voice.

Turquoise smiled then turned to the Remnants.

"Go to the Gem's aid," she ordered firmly. "The time for our redemption has come."

Turquoise's eyes lit up with blue light as she waved her prayer stick.

"Waháčhaŋka," she spoke in a ghostly voice.

A blue light danced around the Remnants them dispersed above them, showering them with lights.  
>The spell Turquoise had used gave the four Remnants protection against the Burner's intense radiation and limited protection against their heat.<p>

"Alright, lets rock!" Pounamu roared as she lept towards the battle with her taiaha raised. Azurite unsheathed her rapier and gave a fencer's salute.

"En garde!" she shouted as she bolted down towards the battle like a blue blur.

Those beasts had tarnished her honor once before and she was ready for payback.

With a flash of orange light, Carnelian summoned her weapon, a razor sharp chakram.  
>She twirled the chakram on the tip of her index finger, then with a flick of her wrist threw it with a loud snap of moving air.<br>The chakram sliced through several charging Burners like a flying guillotine. With their weapons readied and their nerves steeled, the Remnants joined the battle.

* * *

><p>As Garnet fought off several Burners that had surrounded her, a loud savage war cry split the air.<br>Just as Garnet turned to the source of the cry, Pounamu's taiaha struck the Burner's off of her.  
>Pounamu waded into the mass of creatures spinning and thrusting her taiaha wildly.<br>Her eyes were filled with fury and her teeth were bared as she tore through the Burners forces.

"This is for my temple sisters you bitches!" she yelled angrily. "I'm gonna kill every last one of you!"

Pearl drove her spear into a charging Burner when a blue blur swept beside her.

"Bonjour Mademoiselle," Azurite greeted almost in a sing-song manner. "It is good to be able to fight by your side once more, Pearl."

Pearl smiled, it had been centuries since the two had fought side by side.

"I hope you're still as quick with your blade as you used to be," Pearl responded jokingly. "I still have that sword you gave me from the Battle of Agincourt."

Azurite giggled and drove her sword through the mouth of a charging Burner. She then wove through a cluster of the beasts with her sword slicing through them as she dodged and parried attacks from multiple enemies at once.

"Show off," Pearl smirked.

* * *

><p>Adler watched as the Gems and the Remnants battled the Burner horde. He felt a mixture of surprise and embarrassment.<br>If it had not been for Turquoise, the Alloys would have been helpless to the siren. Still, he needed whatever could be found inside the cargo ships.  
>As he watched, he noticed something interesting was happening with the Burners. One of the beasts picked up a discarded rifle and absorbed it into it's arm.<br>He began to see more of the creatures do the same. They picked up rifles, handguns, anything that could shoot and added them into their bodies.  
>A group of twenty Burners lurked around to the gem's exposed flank. Each Burner was bristling with weapons and were aiming them at the gems and the Remnants.<p>

"This is new," Adler hissed softly.

Suddenly, the armed Burners open fired upon the gems. At the sound of the first gun shot, Steven raised a shield around the gems and the Remnants, but not before they had taken a few bullet wounds. Empty bullet casings littered the beach as the Burners kept a constant stream of gunfire on the shield.  
>Steven hissed with pain as blood seeped from a bullet wound to his thigh. He hocked and spat on the wound, but at best it would only slow the bleeding.<p>

"When could they do that?!" Amethyst exclaimed as she and the others lined up to form a defensive circle around Steven.

"That attack was planned," Garnet stated as she grasped her wounded shoulder. "They crept around us and attacked our exposed flank."

"But that would mean that they're...they're learning!" Pearl stated as the terrifying reality became clear. "They can't be that smart...can they?"

"Less talk, more plan!" Steven exclaimed urgently. "I can't hold this thing up for much longer!"

Adler smirked, the gems had fallen for one of the most basic military strategies in the book; attack the weak spot and watch the formation collapse.

"Sir, they could use our help," Wolfram stated stoically. "Permission to engage the hostiles?"

Adler hissed in frustration. Saving his competition was not what he wanted. But the again, coming to the gem's aid would make for great publicity.

"Go!" Adler ordered. "Show them how real warriors fight!"

"Understood!"

With Wolfram leading the attack, he ordered Titanium and Steel to destroy the Burners that surrounded the shielded gems.  
>He and Iron charged towards the Gun Burners. The Gun Burners wailed and turned their guns on the Alloys.<br>Their bullets bounced harmlessly off of their armor as the Alloys attacked.

"I break you!" Iron roared as he slammed his sledgehammer into the ground, creating a shock wave that scattered the Burners.

Wolfram darted between enemies as his sabers cut them down like a scythe through weeds. Titanium and Steel circled around the Burners that surrounded the shield. Steel carved a swath through the beasts as his brother pulled them apart.

"Hey, look who decided to join the party!" Pounamu exclaimed with a smile.

Garnet couldn't believe what she was seeing. The Alloys, the biggest thorn in the gems side, were actually helping them.

"Come on, lets show em' what we're made of!" Amethyst yelled.

Steven dropped the shield and unleashed the fury of the Crystal Gems upon the Burner horde. The horde's numbers began to dwindle at a rapid pace.  
>The beasts couldn't withstand the combined might of the gems and the Alloys. Oddly enough, the battle proved to be a semi-social event.<br>This marked the first time both sides had fought on the same side. Soon, both sides started to watch over the other.  
>Both sides were being bound through combat like the warriors of old.<p>

As Pearl speared a Burner through the face, another sneaked up behind her and churned the liquid hot metal in its stomach.  
>Just as it spewed its infernal vomit out at the lithe gem, she felt something push her out of the way.<br>She heard a loud pain filled cry and looked up to see Iron blocking the attack.

"Go, Lady. I will protect!" Iron grunted in pain as the hot metal seeped into his armor.

Seeing the Alloy struggling against the attacks of the Burners, Pearl lept over Iron and jammed her spear through the head of the spewing Burner.  
>With his body unhindered, Iron swung his sledgehammer and smashed the rest that had surrounded him to oblivion.<p>

"Are you alright?!" Pearl asked worriedly.

Iron nodded his head and rested his sledgehammer against his shoulder.

"Are you, lady?" he asked in an oddly warm way.

"Iron, stop mingling and fight!" Steel hissed coldly as he and Azurite fought side by side.

Burner after Burner fell before the two as they sliced through them in an almost dance like manner. Amethyst cracked her whip and snagged a Burner by the arm.  
>As she pulled, the Burners other arm was snagged by Titanium's chain and hook. The two began to fight over the Burner in a tug of war match.<p>

"He's mine!" Amethyst exclaimed as she pulled on her whip.

"No, he's mine!" Titanium growled as he pulled on his chain.

The unlucky Burner was suddenly sliced in half as Carnelian's chakram flew through the air.

"You're both wrong," she sighed. "He's mine."

Turquoise couldn't help but feel a sense of relief. She had feared that the Gem's and the Alloys' first battle would have been against each other.  
>But this battle was showing that both could work along side each other. This was very pleasing to her.<p>

"Do you see how well they work together?" she asked Adler.

Adler didn't respond. He simply stood and observed as the last of the Burners were slain.  
>With a slash of Wolfram's sabers and a strike from Garnets gauntlets, the last Burner was vanquished.<br>As the Burner gurgled out its last wail, the war torn beach fell silent.  
>Standing proudly over the smoldering Burner husks stood the Crystal Gems, the Remnants, and the Alloys.<p>

* * *

><p>"That...was...freakin' awesome!" Steven cheered loudly. "We kicked so much ass!"<p>

"Steven, language!" Pearl snapped hotly.

"Gotta admit, Pearl. That was pretty awesome," Amethyst said with a smile.

"Yeah, you Alloys know how to throw down. That's for sure!" Pounamu laughed loudly.

"Same to you, Tatts!" Titanium replied with an obnoxious sneer. "And Azurite, you almost kept up with Steel!"

"Almost?!" both Azurite and Steel exclaimed.

"I had fun..." Iron chuckled.

"Yes, you all worked wonderfully together," Turquoise cheered happily as she and Adler approached. "Wouldn't you agree, Adler?"

He gave her a cold glance, then signaled the Alloys.

"Search the boats," he ordered. "Take anything that looks out of place."

Adler wasn't about to let this attack go unanswered for.

"Yes sir," Wolfram responded. "We will search the-"

Suddenly, the cargo ships exploded one by one. The blast sent everyone flying backwards to the sand. With the groan of tortured metal, the cargo ships began to burn.

"No! Wolfram, go now!" Alder ordered.

"Yes sir!"

Wolfram bolted into the nearest cargo ship and tore inside of it. Garnet frowned, she wanted answers and she wasn't going to let the Bureau take them, or let them burn. She lept through the air and ran after Wolfram.

"Garnet, wait!" Pearl exclaimed as Garnet disappeared in the flames. The beach rocked as secondary explosions detonated inside the cargo ships.  
>As the flames grew higher,so did the nervous tension. Everyone was on edge, even Adler.<p>

"Come on, Garnet," Pearl pleaded softly.

"Lady..." Iron spoke.

"Yes?" Pearl responded, not taking her eyes off of the cargo ship.

"You're cuddling my hand...it makes me sleepy..."

Pearl squeaked and turned dark blue with embarrassment. When ever she got nervous, Pearl tended to latch on to people. In this case, she had latched onto Iron's massive hand.

Just as things started to look dire, out of the flames burst the two warriors.

"Garnet!"

"Wolfram!"

The two warriors hit the ground and brushed the flames off themselves. Garnet held two gem fragments in her hands.  
>Wolfram had a system of radio transmitters and a mass of arcane looking machinery.<p>

"Garnet, is that what I think it is?" Pearl asked nervously.

"It's a Phantom Veil generator...or what is left of it anyway."

"That's how this H.L.A got past the navy," Adler hissed. "But what is it you have there, Wolfram?"

"No idea," Wolfram stated flatly.

"Let me take a closer look," Adler said as he removed his glasses.

He looked over the mangled mess of wires and metal closely, then he began to rub his eyes.

"It's an EMP emitter," he stated as his eyes watered. "Its a combination of gem magic and human technology. That's what caused the blackout."

The gems stood flabbergasted. How could a human know all of that just by looking over something once.

"What about those sirens?" Steel asked, still shaken from them.

"And the Burners?" Pearl asked.

Adler bit his lip in frustration. First the blackout, then the H.L.A, now Burners. And he still had to work out an agreement between the gems and the Bureau.  
>He was getting too old for this type of work.<p>

"The moment anything new develops, the Bureau will inform you," he sighed tiredly. "Now, if you'll excuse us, there is a city currently without power. That needs to be fixed."

Steel grabbed Adler and lept towards the east, back to the Monastery. Wolfram bowed his head with gratitude.

"Thanks for the support," he stated flatly.

"No, thank you," Garnet responded. "I hope we can get to the bottom of all of this soon."

Wolfram nodded.

"Likewise."

Wolfram then bolted after Steel.

"Later, Tatts!" Titanium laughed playfully at Pounamu as he followed Wolfram.

"Later, punk!" she responded.

"Bye-bye, lady," Iron said happily as he waved goodbye to Pearl before he followed his comrades.

She giggled and waved back.

"Bye, Iron!"

* * *

><p>With the Alloys gone, the Remnants and the Gems began to make their way back to the temple.<br>Questions weighed heavily down on them, questions that they had hoped to never need answering.

"How can there be Burners if Geissel is dead?" Amethyst asked. "No False gem, no Burners."

"It makes no sense, but there isn't much to go on right now," Garnet stated flatly. "Lets just hope that this attack was an isolated event."

"And if it's not?" Steven asked. "What if the H.L.A can make more Burners?"

Garnet paused and thought. What if no one was seeing the real threat? What force other than the False gem could create Burners?  
>A thought crossed her mind that filled Garnet with a deep dread. The Nazis and the Americans weren't the only super power to have a nuclear program.<br>She had heard news about random radiation spikes in the Russian wilderness recently. But they weren't as powerful as Geissel's had been.  
>But what if it was something else, something new? Was it possible for someone to create another False gem?<p>

"Then things are about to get hotter," Garnet stated grimly.

"Much hotter..."

* * *

><p><em>*Oh, Boy. It's about to get fun! *<em>_  
><em>

_So many questions still unanswered._

_Who are the H.L.A?_

_How did they get gem technology?_

_What created the Burners?_

_Has the False gem returned?_

_I hope you enjoyed this chapter._


	9. Chapter 9: The New Threat

Chapter 9

* * *

><p>The Crystal Gems and the Remnants had all gathered in the temple. They had just beaten down an old enemy who's return should have been impossible.<br>The Gems all felt a heavy sense of foreboding hanging over them.

"None of this should be happening," Pearl stated worriedly. "We destroyed the False Gem. The Burners should have died with her."

Pounamu crossed her arms and scowled bitterly.

"Those weren't the same beasts that burned down my temple," she spat.

"What do you mean?" Carnelian asked as she sat cross-legged on the floor. "They looked like the old beasts."

"She's right," Garnet stated flatly. "These Burners weren't nearly as strong as Geissel's horde."

"And here I thought we were just good at kicking Burner butt," Amethyst sighed tiredly. "But what was with them using guns? Since when could they do that?"

"They seemed smarter than Geissel's Burners, if only slightly," Garnet stated as she adjusted her shades. "But the more important question is what is the H.L.A is and how did they get their hands on gem technology?"

The gems sat and pondered for a moment. There were many nations that had the resources to possibly be able create gem-like technologies, but only a few had the need to. As she thought, Garnet came up with a possible answer.

"During the Cold War, who were the strongest superpowers?" she asked aloud.

"The U.S and the Soviet Union," Pearl quickly answered. "Why do you ask?"

Garnet shrugged her shoulders.

"Just thinking out loud," she responded flatly.

Amethyst and Pearl gave each other a concerned look. Garnet never just thought out loud. She must have thought of something of great importance or infamy.

"What is this 'Cold War' in which you speak?" Azurite asked curiously.

Pearl sighed and squeezed between her eyes. She had forgotten that the Remnants had been in hiding since the Second World War.

"It was a forty-four year period of political and military tension after World War II between the United States and the Soviet Union," she stated tiredly as she showed a holographic presentation of the US and Russia with mushroom clouds popping on them. "During those forty-four years, both sides developed large stock piles of nuclear weapons and practically had them aiming at each other like a bunch of genocidal-"

"Pearl...,"Garnet warned. "Stick to the point."

"Right sorry," Pearl stated embarrassed that she had derailed into another one of her rants. "Anyway, during those forty-four years, the world could have been destroyed in a full scale nuclear war. Even I don't think we would have survived if things between the two nations ever went horribly wrong."

"C'est horrible...," Azurite spoke with a slight trimmer in her voice. "When did they become capable of such a thing?"

"Ungrateful animals," Pounamu hissed. "We bust our asses trying to protect this planet while they try their damnedest to destroy it."

"Oh, so we're animals now, huh?" Steven snapped angrily. "Then what does that make you?"

Pounamu straightened her posture and glared at Steven.

"You tryin' to say something, kid?" she growled threateningly.

"We humans might be violent and stupid at times, but at least we never turned our own kind into vanity mirrors or fashion statements!" Steven responded with an accusing tone as remembered the incident with Lapis Lazuli. "You're just as twisted as we are!"

"Why you insolent little whelp!" Pounamu snapped fiercely as she lunged at Steven with her fists raised.

Before she could get within striking distance of the young half blood, Pounamu was enclosed in a blue sphere. The gems looked over to Turquoise.  
>She had her prayer stick and her eyes were glowing. Pounamu punched and kicked at the sphere as she tried to break free, but the magical barrier would not break. Her eyes went wide and she began to grasp at her throat. She was running out of air. Her kicks became weaker and she slowly slid to her knees.<br>Her yelling and cursing was replaced with coughs and gasps for air.

"Turquoise...I'm sorry...please...I...can't breath," Pounamu begged as she pressed her hands against the barrier.

Much to everyone's shock, Turquoise did not respond. She simply held the sphere in place as Pounamu suffocated. Pounamu inhaled but no air entered her lungs.  
>Her eyes rolled back into her head and she fell limp. With a puff of smoke, Pounamu retreated into her gemstone. Turquoise sighed and dispersed the sphere.<br>She walked up to Pounamu's gemstone and picked it up gently.

"I warned her what would happen should she lose control of her temper," Turquoise stated bitterly. "Hopefully she will learn from this when she reforms."

Both the Gems and the Remnants were stunned. Turquoise had just suffocated Pounamu and was now writing it off as a simple punishment.  
>Pearl was the one that was shocked the most. The Turquoise that she had known for thousands of years, the Turquoise that was very close friends with Rose Quartz would never have done something so cold. Still, she had protected Steven from Pounamu's temper, and for that she was grateful.<p>

"Was that necessary?" Pearl asked, unnerved by Turquoise's show of force.

"Unfortunately, yes, it was," Turquoise responded with a heavy heart. "She has always been very hostile, but watching the False Gem torture and kill her temple sisters has filled her a nearly uncountable fury. Such is the way things are now days I'm afraid."

* * *

><p>As the gems stood in stunned silence, the lights suddenly flickered back on.<p>

"Hey, cool, power is back up!" Amethyst exclaimed happily.

"Garnet, try the television and see if it works," Pearl stated eagerly. "Maybe there is something on the news."

Garnet tried to turn on the television, but it remained dark.

"Is it fried?" Steven asked. "Isn't that what EMPs do?"

Garnet rubbed her hands together vigorously. Sparks began to fly as she created an electric charge.

"Stand back."

Sparks flew from her palms as she placed her hands on the television. Once the sparks died down, the television flickered back to life.

"Fixed it," Garnet stated flatly as she blew the smoke from her palms.

Steven grabbed the remote and started to flip through the channels. He stopped once he landed on a breaking news headline.

"The Ukrainian capital city of Kiev is in flames tonight the Ukrainian military has been forced out of the city by an as-yet unidentified group of terrorists. At six o'clock pm, the unidentified terrorist force launched an invasion of the Ukrainian capital after a nation wide blackout. The Ukrainian military was quickly overwhelmed as the terrorists forces attacked using hundreds of tanks, gunships, and heavily armed militants. Some sources from the surviving Ukrainian forces claim that the invaders quote, 'Came out of a thick fog and attacked with beasts that scorched the ground they walked.' So far, no one has come out to claim responsibility for the invasion."

The room was completely silent. The situation had just become bigger than they could have foreseen, much bigger.  
>The news showed clips of tanks rolling down streets and heavily armed militants busting down doors ans clearing the buildings of their occupants.<br>Every tank, militant, and gunship bore the symbol of the red fist and golden eye.

"As of now, neither the Russian Federation nor the Ukrainian governments have any leads. But we have just received reports that a similar invasion was attempted on the US coastal Beach City. The invasion was repealed with no loses to US armed forces. But sources from Russia are stating that the invading forces are advancing towards the Russian and Poland borders. Stay with us as-"

The news broadcast suddenly cut to static. Once the static cleared, the screen was filled with the image of the red fist and golden eye.

"The Human Liberation Army fights for those who have been oppressed by the corrupted nations of the world. The corruption that is inflicting the world has come from their use and lust over unearthly relics from the heretical Crystal Gems. Today marks the beginning of our global unification and the destruction of any and all non-earthly artifacts or beings. The Crystal Gems will burn as countries like Africa, Bosnia, Cuba, and the former Soviet Union has burned in their unseen war against their own kind. To those who resist us, you will be crushed by the mailed fist of liberation. To those not of this earth, you can not hide from the golden gaze of judgment. To those who are tired of famine, sickness, and poverty, rise up and follow our bold example! This is just the beginning! We will not stop until the world is purified of the Crystal Gems and their corruption! Long live humanity, long live the H.L.A!"

* * *

><p>The Crystal Gems and the Remnants all stood in silence. The attack on Beach City was intended to destroy them and the temple.<br>But it was now possible that the F.B.U.R and the Alloys were targeted as well.  
>The fact that the H.L.A knew where the temple was, and how to get close enough to invade the city, meant that they were not just a ragtag group of idealists with a few tanks and guns. They were smart, well funded, and had the man power to complete their goals.<br>They were a global threat. Not just to the humans, but to what was left of Crystal Gem society.  
>They sought the destruction of all Crystal Gem artifacts and ruins.<br>Some of those artifacts were far too dangerous to be destroyed.  
>And to make matters worse, no one knew where they were coming from or how they had the ability to create Burners of their own.<br>If the H.L.A could create Burners, then who knew what else they were capable of.

"This is very, very bad," Garnet stated somberly.

"How could this H.L.A manage to build up such an army without anyone noticing?" Pearl asked in a panicked tone.

"I don't know," Turquoise answered with dread in her voice. "I just don't know."

"How are going to fight them?" Carnelian asked worriedly. "We can't harm humans, remember?"

"The oath will allow it, but only in extreme cases of self defense," Turquoise responded. "But you do have a point. For now, we need to let the human governments deal with this threat."

"Hello, have you seen the Burners that the H.L.A are using?!" Steven asked bitterly. "Normal soldiers wont last against those things!"

"Steven is right," Amethyst stated. "They're gonna need our help sooner or later."

Turquoise sighed tiredly, she had no solid idea of what to do next. While the H.L.A did pose a huge threat, the Gems simply didn't have enough information to track down their main base of operation.

"Azurite, Carnelian, we need to head back the Spire," she stated firmly. "Amber and the non-warriors might be in danger."

"What about the H.L.A?" Steven asked. "How are we gonna deal with them?"

Turquoise gave a look to Garnet. Garnet nodded her head.

"We will need help," Garnet stated.

"Help? From who?" Pearl asked.

"From those who don't play by our rules."

* * *

><p>"So, the Human Liberation Army thought that they could just waltz on up on US soil and expect to survive? Ha, how foolish!" Adler hissed as he watched the news on the projector screen. "If that pitiful attempt at an invasion is all that the oppressed people of the world have to offer, then they deserve their misery."<p>

Adler turned his attention back to his personal monitor. He had been trying to figure out what was causing the Alloys such pain during the siren.  
>After a few hours he came up with what the cause was, but not it's connection to the siren. The pains were caused by sharp muscle contractions in their stomachs. Adler racked his mind trying to figure out why the muscles in the Alloys stomachs were contracting so sharply.<br>As he studied the Alloys' diagnostics, the answer dawned on him. It was so simple, so basic that it was almost absurd.

The Alloy's stomachs were empty.

The pain was from hunger.


	10. Chapter 10: Doubting the Rose

Chapter 10

* * *

><p>It had been a week since the H.L.A had launched their crusade to unify the world under their banner and wipe out all things gem related.<br>Luckily, the marauding terrorist forces were halted by the Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian militaries.  
>But what the H.L.A lacked in up to date hardware, they made up for with their ingenuity and maliciousness.<br>What ever ground they would lose, they would burn to deny the opposing force the resources.  
>They used ramshackled weapons that used Crystal Gem technologies to bolster their power.<br>Their tanks were layered with black crystal-like slates that drastically increased their armor. Their militants used bottles full of Fire Salts as incendiary grenades.  
>Their gunships could use the H.L.A Phantom Veil generators to hide from anti-air weapons and ambush opposing ground forces.<br>The worst of their arsenal was their ability to turn their fallen militants into Burners at will.  
>Once the Burners were created, they would attack everything that they got their claws on.<br>Metal melted, skin burned, and the ground was poisoned as the H.L.A's beasts tore through their enemy's forces.  
>Despite all of the chaos, the Crystal Gems and the Remnants were taking a neutral stance to the battles on the front lines.<br>The Gems couldn't get involved with the H.L.A's war with the other human nations, no matter how much they wished they could.  
>The most they could do was destroy the Burners once they were summoned.<br>Their goals now were to protect the various Gem ruins and artifacts from sneak attacks from the H.L.A forces.  
>The Remnants had the Shinar Spire locked down until the H.L.A was dealt with. No one could get in and only the warriors could get out.<br>Even the Alloys were absent. The Gems had not seen or heard from them since the failed H.L.A invasion.  
>Tensions were high and everyone questioned who they could really rely on.<p>

* * *

><p>Steven sat and stared bitterly at the television screen.<br>He scowled as the news showed more live footage of the H.L.A's forces fighting against the Polish, Ukrainian, and Russian forces.  
>The three nation's militaries were not holding anything back against the H.L.A.<br>But the H.L.A would always push back and reclaim their conquered territories.  
>They fought like ghosts, using the mystical fog to cover their positions and attack vulnerable areas from behind the enemy lines by using their cloaked gunships.<br>And whenever things started to look bad for them, they always unleashed their Burners upon the opposing forces.

_We should be over there putting an end to this bull,_ Steven thought angrily.

While the Gems may not want to get involved, Steven felt that he needed to. He wasn't one of them, he was more human then they were.  
>Their rules didn't apply to him as far as he was concerned. He growled angrily and shut off the television and turned on the stereo.<br>He sat on the couch with his arms wrapped around his knees. He cranked up the stereo and pressed play.  
>Loud, angry death metal blared out of the speakers and shook the temple. Steven bit down on his lip in frustration. Everything felt so conflicting now.<br>He missed the days when it was just him going on missions with the Gems. He missed just hanging out with Connie, Peedee, and Onion.  
>It felt like his guts were being tied in a knot. It was at times like these that he missed his late friend Tibbets greatly.<br>He was the only person who treated him like a normal human kid. He was the only person Steven viewed as something of an older brother.  
>But Steven could never think about Tibbets without seeing the cold, hate filled eyes of the False Gem staring back at him.<br>Steven clenched his fists and curled up on the couch, saddened and frustrated at everything.  
>No one knew what it was like for him.<br>He was an anomaly, a half breed, a fluke.  
>The Gems didn't understand what it was like, they were of a higher existence then he was.<br>They were immortal, vastly intelligent, and were not burdened by the basic human needs like hunger or sleep.  
>His human friends, and even his father wouldn't understand. To them, Steven was some kind of magical savior of the human race.<br>They were all too awestruck by the magic and mystery of the Crystal Gems to see things from his point of view.  
>He often wondered why his mother Rose Quartz gave birth to him. The stories the Gems told of her made Rose sound like a much better hero and person than he was. She was an ancient Gem warrior, a powerful leader, and she tried to see the good in everything. She was a goddess compared to him.<br>The world deserved better than him.

* * *

><p>The Crystal gateway shimmered and opened to Pearl's room. The lithe gem was welcomed into the temple by a deep, savage death cry and a overwhelming guitar solo. She covered her ears and blocked out the noise.<p>

_Not again,_ she thought worriedly.

Pearl ran to the stereo and pulled the power cable from the wall.

"Steven Quartz Universe!" she exclaimed sternly. "How many times do I have to tell you-"

She stopped herself once she noticed the distraught look on Steven's face. Her motherly intuition told her that he was deeply troubled by something. She walked up and sat next to him on the couch.

"Steven, what's wrong?" she asked with concern in her voice.

Steven didn't respond, he just laid quietly and stared blankly.

"Steven...please?" Pearl begged as she rubbed his shoulder comfortingly. "Talk to me, tell me what is wrong."

Steven sighed heavily and ran his hand over his gemstone.

"Why am I here?" he asked flatly.

Pearl tilted her head and gave him a confused look.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Why am I here and not Rose?" he asked, now sounding more serious.

Pearl was shocked at his question. She knew that he was beginning to question things more than he used to, but she had no idea that he was questioning his own existence.

"Steve, why would you ask something like that?" Pearl asked in a worried tone.

Steven straightened his posture and looked up at the painting of Rose on the wall.

"It's just...all the stories of Rose that you, Garnet, Amethyst, and Dad used to tell me has got me thinking, would the world have been better off with her still alive instead of me? Rose wouldn't have let the Lunar Sea Spire collapse because she left the Moon Goddess Statue on her bed. Rose wouldn't have let that evil painting possess her breakfast. Rose wouldn't have let Amethyst crack her gemstone, and she definitely wouldn't have healed it with her spit. And here I am, a half gem who constantly keeps screwing things up. It seems so unfair. Unfair to the world and to you, Garnet, and Amethyst. You deserve better than me, the world deserves better."

Steven suddenly felt Pearl pull him into a warm embrace. Pearl was shaking and tearing up.

"Don't you say that," she whimpered softly. "Don't you ever say that."

Pearl took a deep breath and tried to regain her composer.

"Your mother loved everything, no matter how disfigured it was. She loved this planet and all of its inhabitants. She loved you so much that she gave her life to make sure that you survived your birth. She gave you her gem, and passed her power down to you. Her powers are now yours to use as you see fit."

Pearl's words of encouragement did little to quell Steven's conflicting thoughts. Rose my have cared and even loved humans, but she wasn't one. Rose might have protected humanity from unearthly threats, but even she could not protect humanity from itself. How could Rose claim to love humanity if she did nothing to stop the conflicts and bloodshed? Steven nudged Pearl away from him.

"Her powers are mine to use as I see fit?" he asked softly.

"Yes, all of them in some form or another," Pearl answered with a smile, relieved that she had reached through to Steven.

"Then let me fight the H.L.A," Steven stated firmly. "Let me stop them before they hurt anymore people."

Pearl's smile faded as the weight of Steven's request fell on her.

"Steven...we all talked about this," she sighed sadly. "We can't directly intervene because-"

"Because of what?! Steven snapped fiercely. "Because its a human conflict?!"

Pearl recoiled away from Steven.

"Steven, there is still too much we don't know about the H.L.A," she stated calmly, trying not to show how upset she was. "The fact that it is a human conflict means nothing."

"Whats there to know? They are attacking everyone around them. They are using Gem artifacts to overpower their opposition. And, to top it off, they can summon Burners! Freakin' Burners, Pearl!" Steven exclaimed as he paced around the living room. "Don't you guys know what that could mean?"

Pearl grabbed Steven by the shoulder and spun him around to face her.

"We know all too well what that could mean," Pearl hissed grimly. "That is why we must be cautious."

Pearl's eyes were filled with a mixture of fear and frustration as she stared at Steven. She wanted to find out how the H.L.A could create their own Burners and how they built their army in secret. But she was so afraid of what they might find. They had barely survived their battle against the False Gem Geissel, and she didn't know if they could survive against another one.

"You're scared, aren't you?" Steven asked, now understanding why the Gems were waiting to act against the H.L.A.

They were all afraid of the possibility of another False Gem. Steven put his arms around Pearl and hugged her. She pressed her forehead against Steven's chest and wept softly.

"Yes...I'm scared," she whimpered. "Geissel almost killed you. I can't let that happen again. I don't know what the Gems would do if we lost you..."

Steven felt ashamed of himself. He was caught up in his own wants and needs that he hadn't thought about how Garnet, Amethyst, or Pearl were mentally and emotionally handling this new threat. The threat of a second False Gem.

"I'm sorry, Pearl," Steven said softly. "I wasn't thinking about-"

"It's fine, Steven," Pearl stated as she wiped the tears from her eyes. "I know how hard it is to watch from the sidelines as things fall apart. Famines, plagues, the wars...they tore Rose up inside."

"And that tore you up, didn't it?" Steven asked as he rubbed her hand comfortingly.

Pearl sniffled and nodded her head. She remembered how Rose used to wake up screaming then cry herself back to sleep. Rose always avoided sleep because her dreams were haunted by the countless faces and horrors of humanity's struggle against their own world. It was soul crushing for Pearl to watch her proud leader suffer. Rose cared and loved humanity, and it destroyed her when she had to watch them hurt themselves. Steven was half human, so it only made sense that he wanted to protect humanity with an even brighter burning passion.

"Tibbets was right, Steven," Pearl whimpered weakly.

Steven was stunned that Pearl would even speak his name, let alone admit that he was right about something.

"You can't hide from the past."

* * *

><p>Garnet was in her room gazing over a holographic display of the globe. She swiped her hand across the screen and showed markers of recent H.L.A attacks. Something was odd, the Crystal ruins and artifact sites that the H.L.A had assaulted were clustered around Poland, the Ukraine, and Russia.<p>

It was obvious to Garnet that the H.L.A were boasting about their ability to attack from anywhere at anytime.  
>Since the failed invasion of Beach City, no other naval invasions had been reported.<br>While their militant forces still had plenty of ground forces left, those four cargo ships used in the invasion most likely were their only ones.  
>But that still left many questions unanswered.<br>How did they get those cargo ships with an invasion force out to sea without the Ukrainians or Russians noticing?  
>Even with their Phantom Veil generators, someone would have noticed sheer number of militants loading into the ships.<br>Garnet paused as she remembered something.  
>She remembered that Connie had pointed out that the cargo ships were old Soviet ships.<br>But what Garnet noticed when she was in the burning ship was that all the signs and warnings were not written in Russian cyrillic, but in Ukrainian cyrillic.  
>This fact gave Garnet an idea. She swiped her hand across the screen and showed the radiation levels around Russia, the Ukraine, and Poland.<br>Besides the high radiation spikes where the H.L.A had deployed their Burner hordes, a long concentrated level of radiation was leading out of the Kiev reservoir and out into the Black Sea.  
>This made even less sense.<br>The Kiev reservoir was too small for the H.L.A to dock the four cargo ships. Garnet sighed and rubbed her eyes.  
>As she stared at the screen, several more radiation spikes showed up along the Russian and Polish front lines. The H.L.A were unleashing their Burners again.<br>But this time, Garnet noticed something else.  
>Seconds before the Burners were summoned, a large amount of radiation spiked near the abandoned city of Pripyat.<br>Garnet focused on the spike and realized that it wasn't coming from Pripyat, but the tortured husk of a city that laid next to it.  
>The scar that marked the face of the natural world. The one place that no one would look for a terrorist group building up it's strength.<br>The one place that the Crystal Gems hadn't been able to clear of gem artifacts.  
>Garnet scowled as she spoke the name of the city that writhed underneath the haunting shadow of the infamous reactor.<p>

"Chernobyl."


	11. Chapter 11: Pizza and Planning

Chapter 11

* * *

><p>"Adler, sir, with all due respect, why isn't the Bureau doing anything about the H.L.A threat?" Wolfram asked. "Shouldn't we be doing something about them rather than staying here at Beach City?"<p>

"Wolfram, right now the United States need the Alloys here in case of another invasion attempt," Adler responded flatly.

"If the H.L.A could afford a second attempt at an invasion, they would have done so by now," Wolfram stated defensively. "Their war with Russia, Poland, and their goal at wiping out Gem ruins and artifacts have stretched their forces thin. If you let us warp in to the general center of their occupied territory, then we could-"

"You could what?!" Adler snapped hotly. "The only thing to find in their territory is nothing but ancient Cold War guilt. Until the Bureau gains more information, you are not to intervene."

"Maybe if we asked the Crystal-"

"Don't- you- say it!" Adler hissed venomously, furious that his proud leader of the Alloys would dare to ask inferior relics for help. "We don't need them mucking up our operations any more than they already do."

"But, sir-"

"You are dismissed, Wolfram!" Adler ordered firmly, ending the argument.

"Yes sir..."Wolfram stated with a defeated sigh.

He then tuned and exited Adler's office and slammed the door shut. Waiting outside of the office were the other three Alloys.  
>They had been listing to the argument through the door.<p>

"No go, boss?" Titanium asked worriedly.

Wolfram shook his head. The Alloys all let out an irritated groan.

"Damn, I'm jonesing for some action!" Titanium exclaimed. "I'm getting' stir-crazy !"

"Stop your belly-aching!" Steel hissed bitterly. "You're starting to get on my nerves!"

"You just had to bring belly aches into this, didn't you?!" Titanium growled as he grasped at his stomach.

A low grumbling echoed from his stomach.

"Have you eaten today, Alloy?" Wolfram asked in a stern tone.

"No, it's weird and I don't like it!" Titanium snapped angrily, his empty stomach affecting his mood.

Wolfram grabbed Titanium by his scarf and pulled him so that they were inches away from each other.

"Our orders are to maintain a steady diet, that includes eating three meals every day," Wolfram stated in a threatening tone. "Do me and Iron need to force feed you again?"

Titanium practically deflated at the thought of being restrained and having oatmeal poured down his throat again.  
>And he knew Wolfram was not one to make idle threats.<p>

"But...those Gems don't need to eat," Titanium answered nervously as his stomach growled. "Why do we need to?"

"Because we are not Gems, remember?" Wolfram responded. "We, as it turns out, need food."

"Enough about food!" Steel snapped loudly, ignoring the empty feeling in his own stomach. "What are we going to do about the H.L.A? If they can hold their own against Russia and Poland, then who's to say they couldn't do the same with the US?"

Wolfram agreed with Steel fully, but Adler was too...troubled to see this possibility.  
>He had ordered the Alloys not to interfere with the situation until given the order to do so.<br>But Wolfram feared that if they waited too long, then no amount of protocol would be able to fix the H.L.A problem.  
>And with the US not wishing to get involved militarily, it left them without many options.<br>They were going to need help from people outside of the Bureau, people they could trust or in a worst case scenario use.

"Go collect your auxiliary weapons from the armory and meet me outside," he ordered. "I've got a plan."

* * *

><p>Steven and Amethyst were lounging out on the patio trying to get the whole situation with the H.L.A off of their minds. Amethyst was folding paper airplanes and launching them into the air. Steven yawned and stretched. He still loved the beach and the ocean. If he could, he would stay out there all day.<br>He then noticed that his stomach was grumbling.

"I'm hungry," he stated as he hopped up out of his lawn chair. "I'm gonna grab some pizza."

Amethyst grinned and hopped up.

"I'm in, anything to get away from this place," she said with her usual fun filled laugh. "I'm sure Garnet and Pearl can handle things while we're gone."

Amethyst grabbed a hold of Steven, lept into the air, and made their way to the Fish Stew Pizza shop.

As the two looked down onto the city, they could still see traces of the failed invasion littering the city.  
>Most of the more hazardous materials had already been disposed of, but a few tanks and craters could still be seen.<p>

"Man, they sure did a number on the city," Amethyst stated in a remorse tone. "Reminds me of the first time we fought against those hot head Burners with your mom."

"Garnet told me about that," Steven responded as he clung to Amethyst. "Did the old Burners wreck the city this badly back then?"

"No, they wrecked it even worse," Amethyst sighed as they hurtled to the ground. "But, I guess that's because the False Gem was givin' em' orders, and not these H.L.A noobs."

With a loud thud, Amethyst's feet hit the ground a block away from the Fish Stew Pizza shop.  
>Amethyst chuckled as she remembered the time Garnet destroyed the Fish Stew Pizza shop sign.<br>It had since been repaired, but she still thought it was funny.  
>As the two headed towards the pizza shop, they could hear the loud, Ghanaian accented voice of the store's owner Kofi.<br>Much to Steven and Amethyst's surprise, he was yelling his lungs out at the four Alloys.

"What part of 'we are closed' do you not understand?!" he shouted angrily at Titanium.

"The whole concept!" Titanium responded loudly. "We are offering you money! So why wont you serve us?!"

"Are you completely blind?!" Kofi shouted as he pointed up at his sign.

Jammed into the side of the shop's sign was the wreckage of the gunship that Titanium had downed during the invasion attempt, barely held in place by a few cables and bent metal pipes.

"Oh, that...right. Iron fix this," Titanium ordered as he pointed at the gunship.

Iron reached up and grabbed the tail of the eighteen-hundred pound helicopter and lifted it off of the building. He shifted his body and then hurled it out into the sea. With a splash of white foamy water, the helicopter began to sink. Suddenly, one of the unexploded rockets detonated and destroyed the helicopter in a huge ball of flames.

"Fixed it..." Iron said happily. "Pizza time?"

Kofi was shocked at the nonchalant show of might that he had just witnessed. But his shock turned back into anger as there was still a huge hole in his ceiling.

"You call that fixing it?" he asked, shaking with anger. "You fixed nothing! Who is going to pay for the damages?!"

"Having sign problems again, Kofi?" Amethyst asked obnoxiously as she and Steven approached.

"Not now, Amethyst !" Kofi exclaimed as he glared up at the stoic Alloy Wolfram. "I can't afford to deal with you Gems and these-these-"

"Alloys," Wolfram stated flatly.

"I don't care! You animals are banned from Fish Stew Pizza!" Kofi exploded angrily.

Steel shoved past Wolfram and grabbed Kofi by the cuff of his shirt and lifted him up off the ground.

"What did you just call us?" he hissed hatefully as his clawed gauntlet formed around his hand.

He raised the razor sharp blades up to Kofi's face. Kofi's eyes were wide with terror as he stared at the gleaming blades that were only inches from his mouth.

"Animals, are we?" Steel spoke coldly. "Well this animal is very, very hungry. Now get back into your little kitchen and make us some damned food. It's the least you could do for us after we saved this pitiful city."

"Put him down, Steel," Wolfram ordered firmly as he placed his hand on Steel's shoulder. "This is your only warning."

Steel scowled and dropped Kofi on the ground. Kofi crawled away from the Alloys and pushed himself off the ground. He was trembling and sweating profoundly.

"F-four e-extra fishy pizzas, c-c-coming right up." he stammered with absolute terror in his voice.

Amethyst and Steven stared as Kofi scrambled back into the ruins of his shop.

"That-that was pretty mean, guys," Steven stated, feeling bad for Kofi. "I know he's a bit of a hot head, but did you have to scare him like that?"

Wolfram curled his fist an slugged Steel right in the back of his head.

"Ow, dammit!" Steel cursed as he gripped his head in pain.

"The next time you pull shit like that again I'll-"

"Hey, is your friend okay?" Amethyst asked as she pointed to Iron

The colossal Alloy was pressing his hands against the sides of his helmet like he was trying to cover his ears.  
>He started to grunt and groan as if something was hurting him.<p>

Titanium hopped up onto Iron's back and started whispering calming words into his helmet.  
>Slowly Iron began to calm down and sat down on the ground with a loud thud.<p>

"Take it easy, big guy," Titanium cooed softly as he patted Iron's head. "We're all friends here, no more yelling."

Iron fell silent as he sat on the ground, visibly calmer. Titanium hopped off of Iron's back and walked up to Wolfram and Steel.

"You guys know he doesn't like it when we fight," Titanium hissed in a hushed but fierce tone.

"Does he do that often?" Amethyst asked as she approached the docile giant.

"No, he only does that if he is being made fun of, or if we start fighting with each other," Wolfram stated with a hint of embarrassment in his voice. "It's a long story."

Steven felt both sorry and confused. He understood the not wanting to watch your friends fight part, but didn't understand what sane person would make fun of an eight foot tall armored colossus wielding a sledgehammer.

"Aww, poor guy..." Amethyst sighed as she patted him on the knee.

"Amethyst, Steven!" a familiar voice cried out.

Steven and Amethyst both spun around and saw that Garnet and Pearl were rushing over to them.

"Sup, guys?" Amethyst asked. "Welcome to our little unplanned pizza party."

Garnet and Pearl stopped and cautiously approached the two once they notice that the Alloys were there as well.

"We heard an explosion and came to investigate the cause," Garnet stated flatly.

"It was just some junk left behind from that botched invasion," Amethyst responded nonchalantly.

Pearl opened her mouth to speak but her mind drew a blank when she saw Kofi shambling out of the store with four boxes of pizza. He was shaking and appeared to have been crying.

"H-here, four extra fishy pizzas...on the house," he whimpered like a wounded animal.

He handed the pizzas over to Wolfram and then retreated back into his store.

"What was that all about?" Pearl asked with concern. "I've never seen him so...scared."

Pearl's question was not answered as the boxes of pizzas were all that the Alloys were focusing on.

"Food time," Iron said happily as he grabbed a slice from his box.

Without thinking, Iron attempted to eat the fishy pizza, but he smashed it all over the face cover of his helmet. Pearl giggled and tapped him on the knee.

"Raise you face guard, silly," she said with a smile.

With a tiny squeak of worn metal, Iron lifted his face guard. Even with his face unguarded, not much of his face could be seen.

"Thanks, lady," Iron said with a subtle warmth in his voice.

"Please, call me Pearl," she corrected.

"Thanks, Pearl," Iron responded.

Pearl still didn't understand anything about the Alloys, but Iron was the only one of them she had interacted with.  
>It seemed odd to her that while Iron was physically much superior when compared to his comrades, mentally, he seemed to struggle.<br>It was like he had the mind of a six year old child. This was very puzzling as none of the other Alloys seemed to suffer from any mental disorders.

Garnet, on the other hand, was a bit concerned. Crystal Gems did not need to eat or drink to survive. But, something about the Alloys' need to felt eerily familiar.  
>She decided to worry about this fact later. Right now, the Gems needed to return to the temple.<p>

"Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven," Wolfram stated flatly, breaking Garnet from her thoughts. "There are matters at hand that I wish to speak with you about."

The Gems all gave each other confused looks.

"We really should be getting back to the temple..." Pearl responded as she slowly hid behind Garnet.

"It's about the H.L.A," Wolfram stated firmly.

This caught Garnet's attention.

"What about them?" she asked flatly.

"You know where their base is, don't you?" Wolfram asked as he crossed his arms.

Garnet remained as stoic as ever. She didn't know if Wolfram actually knew that she knew the location, or if he had taken a shot in the dark.

Either way, he hit the mark.

"Maybe..." she responded. "Why?"

Wolfram took a moment to look around, as if paranoid that someone might be listening in.  
>He then motioned for Garnet to lean closer. He cupped his mouth and whispered.<p>

"We want to help."

"Why?" Garnet asked. "Shouldn't the Bureau be handling this on their own?"

Wolfram shook his head and sighed in frustration.

"The Bureau doesn't believe that the H.L.A pose an immediate threat to the US," he stated bitterly. "But we both know that is a load. If they have Gem technology, then they pose a threat to the globe. We can't simply sit around and wait for the terrorist to make the first move."

"How is any of this our problem?" Garnet asked coldly.

"Please, we both know what Burners mean," Steel said with a small smile.

He glanced over at Steven and then to Pearl.

"I'm sure that we don't need to remind you who created them originally," he hissed. "Good job killing her by the way."

Pearl's blood ran cold as images of Geissel's smiling face flashed in her mind.  
>All that fury, all that hate, all that lust and hunger, she doubted that anyone could create something of her level of evil.<br>But if there was the slightest chance that someone could have, then the entire world was in danger.  
>Something with Geissel's level power could not possibly be contained by humans.<p>

"Fine, what do you want?" Garnet relented.

"As I said, we, the Alloys, want to help," Wolfram stated calmly. "The Bureau doesn't know what we have planned yet, and I'd like to keep it that way for now."

Garnet looked over at the rest of her team. While Garnet knew that the Gems could assault the H.L.A base on their own, they wouldn't be able to fight against the human militants. The Remnants would be in the same position as them. But the Alloys, they could and have killed human aggressors without hesitation. She didn't like it, but Garnet knew that this ability would be needed if they were to attack the H.L.A base. If there was a silver lining in this situation, it was that the Alloys had proved to her that they truly wished to protect humanity, even to the point of going behind their handler's back.

"So, what do you say?" Wolfram stated as he held out his hand. "Partners?"

Garnet was silent for a moment. She then took his hand and shook it.

"Until the H.L.A is dealt with," she said with a calm yet firm tone.

"This is just so touching, but that still makes it eight against God knows how many tanks, gunships, militants, and Burners the H.L.A have," Titanium exclaimed.

Pearl smiled and crossed her arms. She knew just what to do and who to call on.

"Garnet, I think it's time we invited the Remnants over for some tea."

Amethyst rolled her eyes and groaned.

"Let's hope this tea party ends up better than the last one did."


	12. Chapter 12: Summer Time in Pripyat

Chapter 12

* * *

><p>Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven all waited anxiously in the living room.<br>The Gems were all waiting to see if the Remnants would agree to Garnet's offer to meet at the temple.  
>However, they had left the out the fact that the Alloys would be at the meeting as well.<br>The two groups hadn't met or spoken to each other since the failed H.L.A invasion.  
>While the Gems waited in the living room, the Alloys were waiting outside of the temple.<br>Garnet didn't trust them enough to allow them inside the temple, not that anyone could blame her. Wolfram sure as hell wouldn't let the Gems inside the Monastery.

* * *

><p>"Everything is going to be perfect," Pearl reassured herself as she paced nervously. "What could possibly go wrong?"<p>

"You want me to make a list?" Amethyst said with an obnoxious smile.

"You're not helping!" Pearl snapped angrily. "Don't you understand the scale of what is about to happen?!"

"Chill out, P. I'm just messing with ya'," Amethyst responded, slightly surprised by Pearl's reaction."

"Chill out?! We are about to witness Crystal Gem history!" Pearl retorted hotly. "This is going to be the first time Crystal Gems and something of non-gem nature have come together in a peaceful diplomatic-"

"I don't think there will be much diplomacy," Garnet stated flatly, interrupting Pearl. "The Alloys probably view us and the Remnants as allies of necessity. Nothing more, nothing less."

"I don't care what they think of us," Steven responded. "So long as they help us take down the H.L.A."

Garnet had to agree with Steven. If the Alloys were willing to help, then Garnet would accept it.  
>But that did not mean they were on the same team, merely on the same general side.<br>Once the H.L.A were dealt with, she expected things would go back to the way they had been with the Gems and the Bureau competing over Gem artifacts.  
>It wasn't ideal, but it was the most likely outcome.<p>

* * *

><p>Suddenly, the warp pad flashed with a pillar of light. As the light faded, standing on the warp pad was Turquoise, Pounamu, Azurite, and Carnelian.<br>They all looked rather tired and stressed.

"Sorry we're late," Turquoise stated as she stepped off the warp pad. "Things have been...difficult at the Spire."

"What do you mean?" Pearl asked worriedly. "Are you all alright?"

Turquoise nodded her head with a weary smile.

"Yes, we are all fine," she responded. "Our little Amber has just discovered what her weapon was, and she isn't handling it well."

"How is that something to be upset about?" Steven asked with disbelief. "She should be happy that she finally can summon her-"

"It was a voulge-guisarmes ," Carnelian responded. "A weapon similar to a halberd, the weapon that the False Gem used to kill her temple sisters.

Steven fell silent. The more he thought about it, the more he understood Amber's reasons for hating her weapon.  
>She was probably forced to watch helplessly as Geissel used her halberd to cut down her friends or slowly torture them to death.<br>The halberd was a human made weapon that was perfect for killing or maiming. For that reason alone, it only made sense that Geissel would favor it as her weapon. But for poor Amber, having to be stuck with such a similar weapon probably felt like an insult to her fallen friends and comrades.

"So, what is it that you need of us?" Turquoise asked, hoping to change the subject away from unpleasant memories. "We are more than willing to help you."

"We need you to help us deal with the H.L.A," Garnet stated firmly. "We can't afford to ignore them any longer."

Turquoise looked over the Gems and sighed sadly.

"As much as I want to help you, I have already said this once, we can not interfere with human conflicts."

"But they're using Gem technologies to their advantage," Pearl exclaimed. "That means we're already involved in this conflict."

"Even still, we wouldn't be able to anything without harming humans in the process," Turquoise responded. "Our oaths will not allow it."

_Good thing I'm half human,_ Steven thought to himself. _No oath for me._

Amethyst ran to the front door.

"That's why we're getting' help from some folks that don't have an oath," she exclaimed with a smile as she flung open the door.

There was a small gasp from the Remnants as the four Alloys entered the temple one by one. Each Alloy was carrying a metal suitcase. The Alloys all stood beside Wolfram as he approached the Gems. He ran his hand over his helmet and collapsed it to reveal his face. Turquoise shuddered slightly when her eyes gazed upon Wolfram's face. His glowing orange eyes, his oil black metallic skin, the dull orange glow from within his mouth, it was too unnatural, and too familiar. The two stared at each other before Pounamu broke the silence in her usual way.

"Are you crazy?!" she exclaimed loudly. "What are these- these amateur doing inside the temple?!"

"Nice to see you too, Tatts," Titanium responded with a smirk. "Needed my daily dose of verbal abuse. Gets the blood flowin'."

"You sick little-"

"Pounamu..." Turquoise said in a warning tone. "Remember our little conversation about managing your temper?"

The green gem shut her mouth and kept it shut, much to the Alloys pleasant surprise.

"Whoa, got her on a leash now?" Titanium snickered meanly.

"Enough, Titanium," Wolfram ordered. "We aren't here to start a fight."

"Then what are you here for?" Azurite asked bitterly. "Surly you are not here for small talk."

"They have offered to help us deal with the H.L.A threat," Garnet stated flatly as she adjusted her shades.

Azurite crossed her arms and gave an unimpressed look.

"What help could they offer us?" she asked coldly.

Wolfram held out his hand and dropped a black metal cube on the ground. The cube hummed then began to spin in place.  
>Suddenly, the cube separated into four pieces. A green light flashed as a holographic image of the world was created.<br>The map showed where the H.L.A forces were fighting and their captured territories.

"The H.L.A has focused all of their forces in their war with Russia and Poland," Wolfram stated flatly. "From the intel we have gathered, we have a general idea where they're staging their attacks from."

"Their base is in Chernobyl," Garnet stated flatly.

Both the Alloys and the Remnants fell silent. The Alloys were silent with dread while the Remnants were silent with confusion.

"What's Chernobyl?" Carnelian asked.

"A very, very ,very bad place to have a picnic," Steel answered with a dread-filled scowl.

"We will catch you four up later," Garnet responded flatly.

"So information that Garnet already knew about?" Pounamu stated, unimpressed. "That's all you can offer?"

Suddenly, Steel dropped the metal suitcase he was carrying and opened it. What he withdrew was a large blocky metal object.  
>He then ran his finger sensually along the top of the object and it started to hum. Like a creature crawling out of it's cocoon, the object began to unfold.<br>First, a rifle grip and stock unfolded. Then the body of the weapon extended forward.  
>A long hexagonal scope sprung out of the body of the rifle.<br>Finally, the weapon's barrel extended out of the body of the rifle and ended with a muzzle break.  
>He then grabbed the firing bolt and pulled it back. The weapon clicked and hissed with steam.<br>The whole thing looked like a love child between a Barrett M82 and a Flak 88 anti-tank gun.

"We come offering our much needed fire power," Steel said with a chilling smile.

"That was really cool..." Steven stated with stars in his eyes and a bit of drool.

Wolfram shook his head in frustration. He didn't want the Gems to see their auxiliary weapons just yet, let alone whip them out inside their own temple.

"Y-yes, you see, the Alloys don't have the same...restrictions we do," Pearl stammered nervously as she coward behind Garnet. "They-they will take care of-"

"The human aggressors," Turquoise stated bitterly. "Honestly, I hoped you could aid us in a more nonviolent way. Must this situation be resolved through violence?"

"Nonviolently?" Steven asked in disbelief. "Has hiding underground for seventy-two years made you forget what war is? War is not won nonviolently."

"Steven!" Pearl snapped angrily. "Show some respect!"

"I'm starting like this kid," Titanium whispered into Steel's ear.

"No, the child is right," Turquoise sighed sadly. "I had just hoped it wouldn't have to come to violence. But still, what would the Gems or we be able to do? We can't harm humans."

"We can kill Burners, right?" Pounamu asked. "So long as I can do that, I'll be happy."

Garnet nodded with agreement. She didn't like it, but the three groups would need each other to work together if the mission was to be successful. The Gems would deal with the Burners and any other Gem related obstacles. The Alloys would deal with the militant forces, that was the only thing the Gems needed from them.

"If we succeed, we will let you Gems keep whatever artifacts we find," Wolfram stated flatly. "As long as the H.L.A is put down, I don't care what happens to the artifacts."

Pearl had to admit, it was a good offer. The H.L.A would get taken care of and the Gems get to reclaim the artifacts that they hadn't been able to reach.

"That's all fine an dandy, but how are we going to get their?" Amethyst asked. "None of the warp pads in that area still work. They were either destroyed by the Germans in WW II or by the False Gem during her rampage."

"She's right," Pearl agreed. "We still need a way to get there quickly and quietly. And we can't do that without a warp pad."

Wolfram touched the holographic display and zoomed in on the city of Chernobyl. He then pointed to the abandoned city of Pripyat.

"There, that is where we will warp in," he stated firmly. "If we warp too close to the reactor, we will be swarmed in no time."

"That doesn't answer my question," Pearl responded with a hint of irritation. "How can we warp with no warp pads?"

Iron opened up his suit case and held out four long metal pikes. Each pike had a tiny green gem on the end of them.  
>Pearl recognized them as the pikes that the Alloys had used to warp out of the temple ruins with the Oasis stone.<br>The technology behind the pikes looked very primitive, but the fact that the Bureau had managed to create them showed just what they were capable of.

"You all can hitch a ride with us," Wolfram stated firmly. "Our warp relay satellites should be able to reflect us and then beam us down into the city."

"Wait a minute, satellites?!" Amethyst asked with a look of disbelief. "How did you get satellites up without us noticing?"

Wolfram smiled and crossed his arms.

"If Pearl can build a space ship out of garbage, imagine what one can do with state funding," he replied with a sly smile.

Everyone shifted their attention towards Pearl, who was smiling nervously.

"You did what?" Garnet asked in a intimidating tone of voice.

"H-hey now, lets not focus on what I may or may not have done," Pearl chuckled nervously. "We should be focusing on the task at hand."

Garnet frowned, she would continue this conversation later, right now, there was planning to be done.

"Alright, Garnet, any ideas?" Wolfram asked, much to everyone's surprise.

Garnet took a moment to think. Finding the H.L.A base within the city wasn't going to be an easy task. The high levels of radiation would put Steven in danger. Even if they found the hidden base, they would still have to deal with militants, tanks, gunships, and worst of all Burners. But if the mission was successful, then it would put an end to the H.L.A and the Burner threat.

"Alright, listen up," Garnet ordered firmly. "If your satellites can warp us on the outskirts of Pripyat, then we can split up into groups. Each group will look through the city for anything that shouldn't be there. Remember, this place has been abandoned since 1986."

Garnet placed her hand on Steven's shoulder.

"You will stick with Pearl, Carnelian, and Iron," she stated flatly.

"Hey, what about me?" Amethyst asked, disappointed that she wouldn't be able to scare Pearl with a prank.

"You will be in a group with Pounamu, Turquoise, and Titanium," Garnet respond. "Turquoise, can you make sure those two get along?"

Turquoise flash a glare at Pounamu and Titanium, who were already dreading being in a group together.

"I'll certainly try," she said with a tired smile.

"Wolfram, Steel, Azurite, you're with me," Garnet stated firmly.

"There is no one I would rather be grouped with," Azurite said happily.

"Once we locate the hidden base, the Gems will fall back and let the Alloys start the attack."

Garnet turned to Wolfram and nodded her head.

"Listen up boys!" Wolfram ordered loudly. "Once we start the assault, we will need to neutralize any hostiles before the Gems can give us support. You all have your auxiliary weapons with you. Use them until you run out of ammunition. Make each shot count. And no funny business!"

He shot a glare at Titanium.

"That means you Titanium, don't start any crap!"

Wolfram turned to Garnet.

"Anything else?" he asked.

She shook her head no then turned to the others. They were all nervous but otherwise, ready for action.

"Alright, lets move out," Wolfram ordered as he put his helmet back on. "Everyone, press together."

Despite the uncomfortable order, the other complied and pressed into a tight huddled group. Wolfram then took the four warp pikes and place them in a square around them. He then rejoined the group as the pikes began to glow and hum.

"I'm not going to lie, to you," he stated firmly. "This won't be pleasant."

Suddenly, the pikes extended upward and flashed with green light. Within an instant, the Gems, Remnants, and the Alloys were gone.

* * *

><p>Adler was busy going over paper work when his phone rang.<p>

"Professor Adler speaking," he stated.

"Adler, do you care to explain to me why there is a warp signature headed for the Ukraine?" a loud, gruff voice asked bitterly.

"General William, w-what do you mean?" Adler asked startled.

"NORAD is showing that an unscheduled warp has taken place _outside_ of the Monastery," William responded. "You want to tell me what the hell is going on over there?"

"I-I-I don't know," Adler stammered. "There have been no reports that-"

"I don't want excuses!" William boomed angrily. "If Russia or anyone find out about your little science project, then I will personally cut all the funds leading to your research."

"You wouldn't dare!" Adler snapped angrily. "My research is going to change humanity's future!"

"Try me, Professor," William hissed coldly. "Fix this mess, before I do."

With that, William hung up the phone. Adler slammed his phone down in anger.

"How dare those brats!" he growled angrily. "How dare they go behind my back!"

He would punish them greatly for this act of treason. But for now, he needed to find them.  
>If they were headed to the Ukraine, then they could only be going after the H.L.A.<br>Somehow he just knew that the Gems were going to be involved.

"So, little piggies, you thought you could just run off with the sheep?" he asked coldly.

He felt his eyes begin to ache a water up. He could see numbers and hieroglyphics floating in his vision.

"Well, no one hides from this wolf."


	13. Chapter 13: Cold War Guilt Part 1

Chapter 13

* * *

><p>With a loud flash and crack of thunder, the green light of the warp pikes burned into the ground.<p>

Once the light had faded, everyone other than the Alloys collapsed to the ground.

"W-was it supposed to hurt like that?" Amethyst asked as she tried catch her breath.

"Yeah, what gives?!" Pounamu asked as she regained her balance.

Wolfram shrugged his shoulders dismissively.

"You get used to it...eventually."

Garnet rubbed her eyes and popped her neck. The Alloy's warp technology definitely needed some work.  
>Unlike the Crystal Gem's warp pads, the Alloy's warp pikes felt like they were being ripped apart molecule by molecule. It was painful to say the least, even for Garnet. How the Alloys managed to deal with that kind of pain daily eluded her. Steven groaned and quivered on the ground.<p>

"Steven, are you alright?!" Pearl exclaimed as she held his head off the ground.

Steven coughed for a bit then smiled.

"That was so cool...but so painful..." he groaned as she held him.

Steven felt someone's boot nudge him gently in the ribs.

"Get up, light weight," Titanium sneered. "We still got H.L.A bitches to find."

Pearl pulled Steven up to his feet and looked him over to make sure he wasn't visibly hurt. Steven seemed to be suffering from an extreme case of warp sickness. Steven's eyes suddenly widened and he covered his mouth. He dropped to his knees and puked. After the bile was gone, Steven stood up uneasily and gave a thumbs up.

"Good to go..."he burped woozily. "Oh gross, I still taste it."

Completely ignoring the situation with the half-gem, Wolfram was busy checking their location. From his observations, the warp pikes had missed their location.  
>Instead of warping them further from the reactor, it had placed them right in the center of the city of Pripyat.<br>Their plan was to warp to the city outskirts and work their way through the city stealthily. But now, they were in the open and exposed.  
>The longer they stood around increased the chances of them being spotted.<br>Wolfram tapped Garnet on the shoulder.

"We need to break off into our groups, now," he stated firmly.

Garnet agreed, they needed to keep moving if they were going to reach the Chernobyl reactor before night fall. She didn't feel like spending the night inside the Exclusion Zone or fighting the H.L.A in the dark.

"Alright, listen up," Garnet ordered firmly. "I want everyone to break off into their designated groups. Wolfram, Steel, Azurite, and I will head through the center of the city."

"Oh goodie, we get to stay out in the open," Steel hissed bitterly. "This should be fun and eventful."

Azurite rolled her eyes and scoffed. She could already tell she was going to get sick of Steel's attitude.

"Steven, Pearl, Carnelian, Iron, you four will head through the west part of the city," Garnet orders as she pointed the four out.

Wolfram tapped Iron on his knee at get his attention.

"Make sure you keep them safe," he ordered. "Remember, don't use your auxiliary weapon until we find the base."

Iron gave a salute and rested his sledgehammer over his shoulder.

"I obey..." he responded calmly. "I will protect."

"And that leaves me with Pounamu, Turquoise, and Titanium," Amethyst said with a hint of dread in her voice.

Pearl sighed with a mixture of relief and sorrow. She felt relief because she was not part of the group with Amethyst's obnoxiousness, Titanium's vulgarity, or Pounamu's hair-trigger temper. She felt sorrow for Turquoise who was the one who had to be stuck with them.

"Don't worry about me, Pearl," Turquoise spoke softly as if she had read Pearl's mind. "I can deal with these three."

"Think you can keep up without breaking a hip, granny?" Titanium cackled meanly.

"Can you?" Turquoise asked with a sly smile.

"So long as you and Tatts don't slow me down, this should be one big walk in the park," Titanium sneered at Pounamu as if issuing a challenge.

"Punk,"Pounamu spat angrily.

Wolfram tossed three ear pieces to the Alloys.

"If you find anything or get into trouble, use these communicators to contact us," he ordered firmly.

"Alright, everyone stay alert," Garnet ordered. "The H.L.A are hiding in these ruins and we need to find and stop them. Move out!"

* * *

><p>Garnet's group walked cautiously down the eroded concrete road of Serzhanta Lazareva street.<br>Thin patches of grass that had grown through cracks in the street gently swayed in the breeze. The air stank of mold and rust.  
>The buildings that once stood proudly above the city streets now sat empty with their windows shattered, their structures crumbling, and graffiti staining them.<br>A few rusted cars dotted the street, still standing where they had been before the disaster. Plants had grown and spread out since the disaster.  
>Now they where slowly reclaiming the tortured city, free of mankind's interference. But even surrounded green vines and grass , Garnet could still feel the subtle gnawing sensation of radiation all around them. The radiation levels varied, but they were not high enough to harm anyone. This was a relief to her as it meant that Steven was in less danger. Still, she hoped that he would be careful.<p>

"I do not understand," Azurite said in a saddened tone, breaking the long silence. "This place was once nothing but rolling hills and trees. Now it is a ruined and forgotten city."

"You've been in hiding for seventy-two years, Azurite," Garnet stated flatly. "A lot has happened since then."

"Do tell," Azurite pleaded as she looked around the desolate ally ways.

Garnet placed her hand on Azurite's shoulder and pointed towards the horizon.

"You see that tall cylindrical building in the distance?" she asked as she looked over Azurite's shoulder. "That is the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant. About thirty years ago, the reactor exploded and caught fire. The radiation forced the people living here to evacuate. It has been abandoned ever since. The levels of radiation will be much higher the closer we get to the reactor."

"Nuclear?" Azurite asked with a surprised tone. "Humans have finally discovered the power of the atom?"

"Discovered, sweetie, they learned how to split the atom way before they built reactors," Steel hissed with a smile.

"They split the atom?!" Azurite exclaimed in shock. "Don't they know how destructive that is?!"

"That's why they did it," Wolfram responded, ending his silence. "Why waste millions of your own soldiers when you can wipe out your enemy in one blow?"

"The ultimate deterrence..."Steel sighed wistfully. "I've always wanted to see a nuclear explosion. If war is an art form for humans, then the atomic bomb is their masterpiece."

There was a long awkward silence as the weight of what Steel had said sank into the group. Azurite regretted ever opening her mouth.  
>She knew that a lot had happened since she was forced into hiding, but she had no idea just how dangerous the world had become.<br>And Steel seemed to relish the danger and chaos.

"You disturb me, Alloy," Azurite hissed as she glanced over at Steel.

Steel giggled sinisterly in response.

"Welcome to post WWII Earth, sweetie. It's not as peaceful as I'm guessing it was back in your day."

"I'll have you know that I have seen almost every war this planet has had!" Azurite responded hotly. "How many have you seen, Alloy?"

Steel frowned and grit his teeth in frustration. Azurite had called him out on his boasting.

"None...yet," he growled. "It's only a matter of time before things heat up again."

Azurite scoffed and turned her nose up at the battle hungry Alloy.

"Barbarian," she huffed in a tiff.

"Princess," Steel hissed with a cold smile.

* * *

><p>Garnet and Wolfram were walking ahead of Steel and Azurite and were trying their best to tune out their squabbling.<br>They reminded Garnet of Amethyst and Pearl in the way that they argued. They were like bickering children.

"So, Garnet," Wolfram stated flatly. "What was the point of splitting us into different groups? Why didn't you group the Gems, Remnants, and the Alloys separately?"

"Social experiment," Garnet responded stoically.

"Interesting..." Wolfram responded thoughtfully. "So why did you pick me for your group?"

Garnet was silent for a moment before she answered.

"I don't know what to make of you," she stated flatly. "You seem trustworthy, your comrades follow your every command, but I can't shake the feeling that you feel indifferent towards us."

"So?" Wolfram asked.

"So, how can I tell that you're not going to turn on us once this is over?" Garnet asked. "What kept you from attacking us when we first met?"

Wolfram was quiet for a second as he thought about what Garnet had asked.

"Orders, plain and simple," Wolfram stated flatly. "Adler gave us orders not to attack you. So we didn't."

"So, if Adler hadn't given you orders, you would have attacked us?" Garnet asked inquisitively.

"Probably, but we wouldn't have killed you," Wolfram responded bluntly. "Killing the Crystal Gems would have been a PR nightmare. The Bureau doesn't need that kind of attention."

Garnet felt a spark of anger at the tone of Wolfram's voice. He spoke as if it orders were all he knew and trusted.  
>He and the Alloys had so much potential, and yet they were nothing more than hounds of the Bureau, and Adler was the one holding the leash.<p>

"Why do you take orders from that Adler?" she asked. "He is nothing compared to you."

Wolfram hastened his pace slightly so that he was walking ahead of Garnet.

"You've never had a mother or father before, have you?"

Garnet felt something pull inside of her. The only person she could picture as a mother was Rose Quartz.

"No, I haven't," Garnet stated stoically, hiding the emotions she was feeling. "Your point?"

"My point is, we Alloys were not born, we were made. Adler was the one who lead our development," Wolfram responded flatly. "He is the closest thing to a father we Alloys have. He made us to protect our country from unearthly threats. That is our purpose, our reason to exist."

Garnet was surprised at how bleak Wolfram viewed the Alloy's existence. He spoke as though they were merely tools to be used as the government saw fit.

"Don't you have any personal reasons to why you do what you do?" Garnet asked. " I protect humanity from unearthly threats as well, but I don't do it because human governments tell me to. I do it because I want to."

Wolfram sighed heavily.

"That's the main difference between you Gems and us Alloys. You are warriors, we are weapons with someone else holding the trigger."

"Then why did you come to ask for our help?" Garnet asked. "The way you speak, it sounds like you're some kind of slave to the Bureau. They gave you no orders to aid us, so why have you?"

Wolfram was silent for a moment. He felt a dull pain in his stomach.

"I did it because-"he paused, he was hesitant to finish what was on his mind.

"Because what?" Garnet asked firmly as she grabbed his shoulder and stopped him from walking.

He glared back at her and swatted her hand away. Garnet reared back, caught off guard by how hard the impact was. She knew that Wolfram was strong, but not strong enough to actually stagger her, even if he had only just swatted her hand away. He turned away and continued to walk forward down the desolate street.

"I did it because something is calling out to me," he said as he stared at the Chernobyl reactor that was far on the horizon.

Garnet rubbed her hand to relieve the pain.

"What do you mean calling out to you?" she asked firmly.

Wolfram shook his head. He had no idea how to describe the feeling he had. It wasn't hunger like when he heard the sirens during the H.L.A invasion, but that is when he started feeling the foreign sensation. But the sensation felt oddly familiar, like it was connected to him. It made him feel sad, it filled him with longing, but something inside of him was screaming at him to end the calling.

"I'm not sure, but I'm going to find out what it is," Wolfram stated coldly. "And if possible, silence it."


	14. Chapter 14: Cold War Guilt Part 2

Chapter 14

* * *

><p>Steven, Pearl, Carnelian, and Iron steadily made their way west from where the groups had separated. Like the rest of the dead city, the path they walk was a somber one. The street lights who's lights had long since been extinguished stood with vines strangling their metal bodies. The streets were crumbling and cracking far more than in the other parts of the city. Tall sickly looking trees hung ominously over their heads as they passed underneath their shadows.<br>The wind felt some what colder as his whistled softly. The unnerving calmness had put everyone on edge, with the exception of Iron; who was simply content with following the group leader.

"This place is way too quiet..." Steven stated softly as he trailed behind Pearl. "What are we looking for again?"

"Anything that looks out of place," Pearl responded as she walked with her spear in her hand.

"How will we know when he see... whatever it is we are looking for?" Steven asked. "This place is a big mess, it could take days to search the city."

"My guess is that it will look fairly obvious," Carnelian chimed in almost eagerly. "Gem architecture is very different from that of humans."

_That's really helpful,_ Steven thought bitterly.

Finding anything in this abandoned city was going to be like finding a needle in a haystack.  
>Steven was starting to feel like this whole trip was turning into a wild goose chase.<br>But he knew better then to question Garnet's intuition, and if she felt that there was something hiding within this ruined city, then she was probably right.

While the group walked past an abandoned elementary school, Pearl suddenly stopped. She tensed up and gripped her spear tightly.

"What's is it Pea-"

Pearl put her hand over Steven's mouth and silenced him. She then pointed up towards the elementary school building.

"I saw something moving up on the second floor," she whispered in a firm tone.

"Really, should we check it out?" Steven asked after pushing Pearl's hand away from his mouth.

"No, you stay here with Carnelian and Iron," Pearl stated. "It's too risky for all of us to go in at once."

"What? Come on, Pearl," Steven exclaimed disappointed. "I'm not going to let you go in alone and get whomped by some crazy mutant."

"Steven's right, Pearl," Carnelian stated with a smile. "There is power in numbers."

Pearl frowned and looked over the group. Her gaze fell upon Iron who had said nothing since the teams had split up.

"Well, what do you think, Iron?" Pearl asked in a stressed tone.

Iron was quiet for a moment before he gave his answer.

"I will follow..." Iron spoke softly through his helmet.

Pearl sighed shook her head.

"Fine, lets go, but be quiet," she ordered bitterly.

"Right behind you," Steven stated happily.

* * *

><p>The team slowly and cautiously approached the abandoned school building.<br>Pearl slipped her hand down towards the tip of her spear for better control in case of a close quarter ambush.  
>With an orange flash of light, Carnelian summoned her chakram disc. She twirled it with her fingers to build up it's speed for a more powerful throw.<br>With a low grunt, Iron swung his sledgehammer off of his shoulders and held it at the head of the hammer with one hand.  
>A low howl emanated out of the entrance of the school building as wind blew through it. Steven had to admit, this place was way too creepy; even for an abandoned building.<p>

"Alright, I'll go in first," Pearl stated softly as she reached the entrance.

Pearl cautiously tiptoed through the entrance, her spear held out in front of her. She looked around and made sure the coast was clear.  
>So far there was nothing but dust and dirt.<p>

"You're next Steven," Pearl whispered as she waved him on.

Unlike Pearl, Steven bolted into the building. He was really creeped out and something in the back of his mind told him to stay close to Pearl.

"Are all schools this creepy?" he asked as his eyes darted nervously.

Pearl rolled her eyes and turned back towards Carnelian and Iron.

"Everything seems clear, come on, we don't want to get separated," she stated as she signaled the two to follow her.

Carnelian briskly walked into the building as if nothing was wrong.

"Well, isn't this place sad looking?" she asked as looked down the hallways. "Alright, what do we do now?"

Before Pearl could answer, a loud thud sounded behind them, startling her, Steven, and Carnelian.

"Oww..." Iron groaned.

Pearl turned to face the source of the loud thud with her spear raised. She gave a sigh of relief once she realized what had caused it.  
>Iron had walked into the top of the entrance frame. His simple mind was so focused on following the group, that he didn't notice that he was far too large for the entrance. The entrance way had been built for people of an average height, not for someone who was eight feet tall.<br>Iron backed up and tried to enter the building again. He met the same results with an even louder thud.

"Oww..." he groaned as he shook the concrete crumbles off of his head.

He took a step back to make another attempt, but luckily Pearl intervened.

"Iron, stop," she exclaimed as she held her arms out in front of her. "That isn't going to work."

Iron looked down at Pearl then back up to the entrance as if bewildered.

"Why?" he asked.

Pearl was astonished at how simple minded Iron was. She had her doubts, but now knew that there was defiantly something not right with his head.  
>Pearl sighed and patted Iron on his knee.<p>

"You're just too big to fit through the door," she stated in a soft, comforting tone.

"Yeah, and you might bring the whole building down if you keep slamming into it," Steven interjected.

"He is right Pearl," Carnelian chimed.

Pearl looked up at Iron with a saddened look.

"Iron, you're going to need to stay out here and wait for us," she stated sadly. It felt like she was punishing the gentle Alloy for some reason.

"We won't be long, I promise."

Iron took a few steps back as if he was hurt. He kept looking down at Pearl then back up to the entrance as he tried to process what she had told him.

"But-I...Wolfram's orders..." he muttered in frustration. "If I'm out here...then I'm not following them..."

Iron's frustration quickly turned into agitation. To him, Wolfram's orders were always to be followed.  
>He knew no better, so whenever something came in between him and his orders, the obstacle needed to be removed.<br>Steam seeped out of his helmet as he readied his sledgehammer. He was going to get into that building, one way or another.  
>Pearl began to cautiously step back from Iron. She felt like she was standing in font of a cannon with a lit fuse.<br>Before Pearl could form the words she needed, Carnelian brushed past her. She lept up onto Iron's back and began to hush him softly.

"Shhh...calm down, calm down," Carnelian cooed gently as she rubbed her hand against the Alloy's shoulder. "I'll stay out here with you...so technically, you're still following your orders."

Like a dying fire, the colossal Alloy began to calm down. Iron lowered his sledgehammer and the steam stopped. With a dull thud, Iron sat down with Carnelian still on his shoulder.

"Better?" Carnelian asked with a warm smile.

Iron was quiet for a moment before giving a barely audible response.

"Better..."

"Good," Carnelian said patted Iron's helmet. "Pearl and Steven will be fine on there own. Right Pearl?"

"Right, you two stay out here while Steven and I search the building," Pearl responded, not showing how relieved she was at how quickly Carnelian diffused the situation. "Come on, Steven."

"Take it easy big guy," Steven said with a friendly smile. "We'll be right back."

* * *

><p>After leaving Iron and Carnelian outside the school, Pearl and Steven made there way through the desolate building.<br>The rooms on the first floor were the most damaged. Years of neglect had allowed plant life to grow through the windows and up through the floors.  
>The walls was covered with peeling paint and even the tattered remnants of banners and posters.<br>The one thing that stood out the most for Steven was the graffiti that stained the walls. It made the building seem even more unwanted.  
>Smiley faces with ex-ed out eyes, what he could assume were gang signs, and even small cartoons.<br>None of it sat well with Steven, or Pearl.  
>For Steven, it made him feel as though the graffiti was disrespecting the memories that still lingered.<br>For Pearl, it was just one more thing that needed cleaning.

"Oh, dear...just look at this place," Pearl sighed as she ran her finger along the wall, leaving a line in the dust and grime. "Why can't human buildings degrade more...pleasantly?"

Steven didn't respond, he didn't know how to. He had grown up seeing crystal gem ruins and temples, but this was the first time he had seen actual ruins of humanity. Something about the emptiness struck a nerve inside of him. The desolation, the darkness, it made Steven feel empty.

"Pearl?" he asked stoically. "You know that sad feeling you get whenever we walk into gem ruins?"

"Yes...why?" Pearl asked cautiously.

"I understand it now," Steven responded sadly. "To me, those crystal ruins were just part of growing up. But you still remember them back when they were still whole and lively."

"Steven...what are you getting at?" Pearl asked, a little unnerved at Steven's observations of her behavior.

"Just sayin' I get it now," Steven responded as he kicked a pebble. "It sucks but I get it."

The sound of movement made both Steven and Pearl freeze. Pearl was right, she had seen something, and it was still in the building.

"It's coming from the floor above us," Pearl whispered. "Follow my lead."

* * *

><p>Outside of the school building, Iron and Carnelian waited patiently for Pearl and Steven to return.<br>Carnelian hummed happily to herself as she swung her feet off of Iron's shoulders.  
>Despite the desolation around her, Carnelian wasn't going to let it dampen her mood.<br>The sky was just as blue as it would be anywhere else and the sun was still shining.  
>And despite his silence, Iron made for great company.<p>

"Your voice...is pretty..." Iron stated bluntly, breaking his silence.

"Aww, thank you," Carnelian responded happily.

Iron fell silent once again, his thoughts and emotions hidden underneath his helmet. Carnelian continued her humming. Another minute passed before Iron spoke again.

"Carn-elian...?" he asked as he struggled to pronounce her name.

"Yes?" Carnelian asked playfully.

"When you close your eyes...do you see pictures...?" Iron asked.

Carnelian hung upside down off of Iron shoulder with a puzzled look.

"Like dreams?" she asked. "I don't need sleep, so I don't dream that much. Why?"

Iron began to fiddle with his hands nervously.

"In the pictures...I see me, but it isn't me, its another me. The other me is smaller and soft." he spoke stoically. "In the pictures...people are pointing and laughing at the other me. They throw things...call the other me names...hurt the other me."

Iron dug his fingers into the dirt as he tried to form the right words for what he was struggling to say.

"Iron, are the other Alloys bullying you?" Carnelian asked worriedly.

"No!" he snapped as he pounded his fist on the ground. "Wolfram, Steel, Titanium are good to me..."

Carnelian sat down in front of the distraught Alloy. What he was describing sounded like a case of repressed memories. But that couldn't be as he and the rest of the Alloys were artificially made.

"These pictures, if you don't mind me asking, how do they end?" Carnelian asked inquisitively.

Iron was quiet as he tried to answer the orange gem.

"Mama..."he spoke wistfully. "They end with Mama..."

This confused Carnelian even more. Iron didn't have a mother.

"What is your mama's name?" she asked.

Iron shook his head.

"Don't know...Mama doesn't talk...only smiles."

Carnelian felt a chill run down her spine. What kind of nightmares was this poor soul seeing? Someone so kind and gentle as Iron should not have to go through that alone. She could tell that Iron was challenged, he couldn't possibly understand what was happening as he slept. But the question that pried Carnelian was who was this 'Mama' that Iron spoke of?

"I hope Pearl and Pink are okay..." Iron stated as he looked up at the school building.

"You mean Steven...right?" Carnelian asked.

"Steven...that's what I meant," Iron responded softly.

* * *

><p>Pearl and Steven slowly crept up a flight of stairs, trying their best not to make a sound. But the aging stairs creaked and groaned with each step they took.<br>As Pearl peeked around the corner of the stair way, she saw something dart into one of the class rooms.  
>She didn't get a good look at it, but could hear a low rustling noise coming from the room. With her spear raised, Pearl tiptoed down the hallway with Steven close behind. The rustling turned into a low growling. As the two crept closer towards the classroom, Pearl began to notice large gashes on the floor and wall.<br>No human could make gashes that deep. Pearl stopped at the edge of the door frame. Steven's heart was pounding as he waited for Pearl to make the next move.

"On three, we move in," she whispered firmly.

"One."

Pearl tightened her grip on her spear.

"Two."

Steven readied himself for the rush.

"Three!"

Pearl and Steven rushed into the classroom. They were greeted by a loud growling mass of brown, splotchy fur.  
>The creature slowly turned around and stood up on its back legs. The creature's muzzle was red and worn of flesh.<br>It's teeth were dripping with saliva and blood as it issued a threatening growl. The beast stood a least seven feet tall and was covered in scars.  
>But the beast's most disturbing feature was it's lack of eyes. Where it's eyes should have been was covered in skin, as if born without them.<br>Blind or not, the creature seemed to have no problem knowing where Pearl and Steven stood.

Pearl was ready to slay the creature, but then she heard a small mewling coming from behind the beast. Hiding behind the creature were two smaller beasts. Then it finally clicked with her.

"Steven, we need to leave," Pearl stated quietly.

"What, come on Pearl, we can take-"

"I said we need to leave!" Pearl snapped as she pushed Steven out behind her.

Pearl didn't stop pushing Steven until they were halfway down the hallway. Steven finally pushed back and staggered Pearl.

"What was that all about?" he snapped hotly. "We could have taken that-"

"Bear..." Pearl stated grimly.

"What?" Steven asked confused.

"That...thing in that classroom was a bear," Pearl responded coldly. "With cubs."

Steven felt as though he had been slapped.

"How was that _thing_ a bear?" he asked. "Bears don't look like that."

Pearl sighed sadly and walked ahead of him.

"Radiation doesn't just kill things, it also corrupts them," she stated bitterly. "That poor creature in there is an example of what happens to those exposed to it before they are even born."

Steven felt a hint of anger in Pearl's voice. Something must have struck a nerve in her.

"Pearl, is there something you're not telling me?" Steven asked cautiously.

The two stopped as they saw something spray painted on the wall.  
>On the wall were the words "where are your gems now?!" painted in bold black spray paint.<br>An angry tear rolled down Pearl's face before she stormed down the stairs.

"Pearl-Pearl wait up!" Steven exclaimed as she cased after her.

Pearl didn't slow down as she walked away from Steven.

"Come on, Pearl, just slow down and talk to me!" Steven exclaimed as he grabbed her by the shoulder.

"There is nothing to discuss!" she snapped fiercely. "I for one am done wasting time in this husk of filth and shame!"

"No, something is bothering you," Steven responded defensively. "Now tell me what it is!"

Pearl trembled with suppressed anger.

"We, the Crystal gems have tried so hard to keep this planet safe," she stated with an angry trimmer. "Sometimes I wonder if the humans even care about their own home word. How could they do the things they do to it?"

"Why are you asking me?" Steven asked. "I'm a half gem, remember?"

"Yes, but you're also half human," Pearl responded. "What does the human side of you think? Why do they hurt this planet so much? Why do they try to ruin what your mother fought so hard to protect?"

Steven fell silent, he hadn't realized how deeply this place was affecting Pearl. It made sense that she would get upset over places like this. If his mother was half the benevolent being everyone said she was, then places like this must have made her feel as though she had failed to keep the planet safe. Steven placed his hand on Pearl's shoulder comfortingly.

"Everyone can make mistakes," Steven stated somberly. "The only problem with humans, is that we can't live long enough to see the lasting effects of those mistakes."

"That can't be the only reason," Pearl sighed bitterly. " Everyone can see the consequences of the mistakes they make. Humans are always toying with powers they hardly understand. The motive is always the same, to gain an advantage over their opponent, to become stronger. Why can't they just let us protect them? Why can't they be more like us?"

"Like you?" Steven asked with a hint of anger in his voice. " What, godlike?"

"You know what I mean, Steven," Pearl responded defensively.

"Maybe I don't know what you mean," Steven stated hotly. "Explain it to me, why should they be like you? Is there something unappealing to you about humans?"

"You know that isn't true, Steven," Pearl responded. "There is nothing wrong with humans themselves. It's what they do to the planet and themselves that upsets me. They fight, they pollute, they kill each other. And for what?"

"Survival," Steven stated coldly. "It seems to be the one thing they are better at than Gems."

"You're speaking nonsense, Steven," Pearl stated dismissively. "Human lives are but a blink of an eye to us. How is that survival?"

"Tell me, can you still call the Crystal Gems a civilization?" Steven responded venomously. "While they might not live as long as you, their civilization still stands. To me, that is survival."

"Hatred, anger, lust, how does survival justify those?" Pearl asked angrily.

"It doesn't," Steven responded. "But that doesn't make humans monsters."

"Then what does that make them?" Pearl asked.

"Flawed, just like you," Steven responded. "If Rose could look past all of the flaws and see the potential, then why can't you?"

Pearl could tell that she had said too much. She didn't intend to say all of those things, she was just so frustrated that she didn't think about what she was saying.

"Steven...I didn't mean to-"

Before she could finish speaking, Steven stormed out of the school, leaving Pearl stricken silent.

_Nice one, Pearl_, she said to herself as she squeezed the ridge of her nose. _You just keep pushing him even further and further away._

Pearl shook her head and followed after Steven, who had regrouped with Iron and Carnelian.

_I certainly hope Amethyst is fairing better than I am. _


	15. Chapter 15: Cold War Guilt Part 3

Chapter 15

* * *

><p>"Come on slowpoke!" Titanium jeered as he lept over from one rooftop to the other. "I bet Amethyst can run faster than you!"<p>

"Shut it, punk!" Pounamu barked as she landed behind the Alloy. "I'm gonna leave your ass in the dust!"

"Fat chance, Tatts!" Titanium cackled as he continued running across the rooftop, his crimson scarf rippling behind him. "I've seen paint dry faster!"

"I'll make you eat those words!" Pounamu growled as she tried to close the distance.

The wind ripped past the two as they ran and lept from building to building. It was a constant contest between the two.  
>They would go from one taking the lead to being neck and neck as the world blurred past them. Neither wanted to stop, for that would mean the other would win. Titanium wasn't about to let an old relic like Pounamu win against him. And Pounamu needed to put the Alloy amateur in his place.<br>If he wanted a race, she was going to win it and prove her superiority.

On the ground, Amethyst and Turquoise watched wearily as the two hot blooded warriors raced across the roof tops.

"Oh, great, they're racing again," Amethyst groaned tiredly. "Why don't they give it a rest?"

Turquoise smiled as readjusted her shawl.

"Oh, I believe that their little competition will end soon," she stated warmly.

"Yeah, but when?" Amethyst asked. "They've been doing this since we got here."

Turquoise pointed her finger and began to follow the two racers.

"Right about...now."

"Come on, whats the matter?" Titanium mocked as he looked behind at Pounamu, not noticing that there were no more roof tops to jump onto. "Your legs getting tire- Oh Shit!"

The Alloy luckily managed to slow down just enough at the last second so that he didn't fall over the edge.  
>Unfortunately, Pounamu could not break in time and slammed into the Alloy, sending both of them tumbling over the edge.<br>With a loud smack, both of them hit the ground.

"Oww, damn it," Pounamu hissed as she tried to shake the sparkles from her vision.

"You could have bought me a drink first," Titanium groaned sorely.

Pounamu's eyes opened and were greeted by the Alloy sneering smugly up at her. She had landed on top of him and both had their faces inches apart.  
>Pounamu quickly sprung up off the Alloy with a disgusted snarl.<p>

"You're such a pig!" she exclaimed as she dusted herself off, blushing a dark green.

Titanium began to laugh as he pulled himself out of the ground. It tickled him to see the tattooed covered she-wolf acting all flustered and embarrassed.

"If you wanted to cuddle all you had to do was ask," he retorted as he snapped his neck back into place.

"You make me sick," Pounamu hissed coldly through her filed teeth. "Underneath all that armor, you're just an immature punk-ass."

Titanium gave a cruel laugh as he pulled down his scarf from over his mouth.

"Sweet nothings will get you nowhere."

Pounamu's temper had been on the rise ever since the three groups had split up. Out of all of the people she had to be stuck with, it was just her luck that she had to be stuck with the one she hated the most. If it weren't for Turquoise, Pounamu would have beaten the Alloy to a pulp already. She hated everything about Titanium. She hated his voice, his smug attitude, his crimson scarf, his goggles, and the way he was always twirling that stupid chain of his around.  
>But what she hated the most about him was that he had the skills to back up his talk. That infuriated her.<p>

"That was some fall you two took," Amethyst laughed obnoxiously. "We heard the smack a block away."

Turquoise sighed as she noticed the imprint in the ground.

"All these petty competitions you two keep having need to stop," she ordered firmly. "They are accomplishing nothing."

"I don't take orders from you, grandma!" Titanium retorted harshly.

Turquoise simply smiled and held up the communication ear piece that Wolfram had given Titanium.

Titanium reached for his ear and, sure enough, it was gone.

"How did you-"

"It's a shame you feel that way, Alloy," Turquoise said with a threatening tone. "Because I think Wolfram might not share the same feelings."

Titanium suddenly tensed up and showed signs of panic.

"H-hey now, come on, don't do that," he chuckled fearfully. "I-I was just kiddin' around. No need to get Wolfram involved."

"Are you sure?" Turquoise asked with her eyebrow raised. "Because if you want I could-"

"Alright, alright, you win!" Titanium exclaimed desperately. "I'll behave..."

Pounamu snickered with a cold smile on her face.

"What's the matter?" she mocked. "Feeling a bit nutured?"

Pounamu's hateful remark was rewarded by a sharp pull on her ear.

"As for you, I expect you to behave as well," Turquoise stated firmly as she pulled the green Gem's ear.

"I will, I will, just let go!" Pounamu cried out in pain.

"Promise?" Turquoise asked as she pinched down harder.

"Yes, I promise!" Pounamu exclaimed loudly.

Turquoise smiled and released the green gem from her vice like grip. Pounamu hissed as she rubbed her sore earlobe. Amethyst was having a difficult time stifling her snickering as the both Titanium and Pounamu kept avoiding eye contact with Turquoise. It was like they were children avoiding the gaze of the parent that just scolded them.

"Come, we still have a lot of territory to cover," Turquoise stated as she patted both Pounamu and Titanium on the back.

"Turquoise, large and in charge!" Amethyst chuckled as she brushed past the stunned Gem and Alloy.

Titanium and Pounamu both turned to the other with resentment in their eyes. The two begrudgingly continued forward down the crumbling street.

"Punk-ass..." Pounamu spat.

"Bitch..." Titanium hissed.

* * *

><p>As the two hot blooded warriors straggled behind, Amethyst and Turquoise walked briskly down the street. The wilderness had retaken most of this part of the city. The trees were green and appeared healthy and grass was growing tall. Unlike Pearl, Amethyst had no real strong feelings about this place.<br>To her, it just seemed like any other type of ruins. Turquoise on the other hand felt a heavy sorrow weighing on her heart.  
>This now desolate city was once whole, thriving, and full of life. She could hear the echos of the intangible memories that haunted this city.<br>They howled like the wind and chilled the old Gem to her core. But that it how it was for her in this new age.  
>So much had happened since she and the other Remnants went into hiding.<br>Much of these memory echos were new to her and distressed her.

"No way!" Amethyst exclaimed as ran ahead of the group and ran through a small line of trees.

"Amethyst, be careful," Turquoise ordered as the short purple Gem disappeared behind the tree line.

"Guys, come check this out!" Amethyst shouted loudly.

Turquoise stepped to the side just as Titanium's chain shot past her and into the trees.

"Last one there sucks!" he cackled mockingly as he propelled himself past the thicket.

As if on cue, Pounamu ran past Turquoise like a green blur.  
>With an irritated sigh, Turquoise made her way through the small thicket. As she broke out of the dense brush and trees, her feet fell onto hard concrete.<br>Standing defiant amongst the crumbling, dull gray buildings that made up the rest of the city stood a rusted yellow Ferris wheel.  
>The group had stumbled upon the iconic Pripyat amusement park. The park was set to open on the first of May back in 1986.<br>But before the park could open its gates to the public, on the twenty-sixth of April, 1986, the Chernobyl reactor exploded and unleashed its sickness upon the city.  
>The Pripyat amusement park now stood amongst the ruins of the tortured city, robbed of its purpose.<br>What was made to bring joy and laughter to children was cursed to decay in deafening silence.

"Way creepy..." Amethyst cooed, wide eyed with amazement at the dilapidated park.

Compared to Beach City's Funland, the Pripyat amusement park was rather small. It only consisted of the one big Ferris wheel, a small merry-go-round, a boat swing, and bumper cars.

"This is supposed to be an amusement park?" Titanium asked bitterly, disappointed at how small it was. "I guess nuclear reactors weren't the only thing the Reds couldn't get right."

"For once, I agree with you," Pounamu responded, much to her own surprise. "This place is pathetic."

"Well, if the H.L.A are hiding something, they sure wont be hiding it out here," Amethyst stated as she walked around the park. "Nothing here but rust and moss."

Turquoise nodded her head in agreement, this place was too small for anything to be hidden here.  
>She looked beyond the Ferris wheel and noticed a tall building a few blocks away.<br>Sitting atop the building, as if claiming responsibility for the desolation was a weathered sign of a hammer and sickle.

"There," Turquoise stated as she pointed towards the building. "We should search there. Amethyst and I will search the lower levels and-"

"Top floor, here I come!" Titanium shouted eagerly as he bolted towards the building. "Later suckers!"

Pounamu growled angrily and ran after the vulgar Alloy. She wasn't about to let him get there first.

"Wait until I get my hands on you!" she yelled as she charged after him. "No one insults me and gets away with it!"

"Ugh...there they go again!" Amethyst exclaimed frustratedly. "What was Garnet thinking pairing those two up?"

Turquoise shook her head, she was just a clueless as Amethyst.

"I am not sure, Garnet has always been very quiet and stoic," she stated thoughtfully. "But her leadership has kept you, Pearl, and Steven alive, so I trust her judgment."

Turquoise's sagely words left Amethyst unsatisfied. Garnet has made confusing decisions before, but pairing up the violent Pounamu and the smug and vulgar Titanium made absolutely no sense. It was like putting a mongoose and a cobra in a cage together. One of them was going end up hurt, or worse.

Amethyst sighed and continued towards the abandoned building along side Turquoise.

"Let's hope those two psychos don't tear each other apart," she said with a weary tone.

"Yes, let's hope..." Turquoise responded worriedly.

"Hypothetically speaking, if the two were to start brawlin', my money is on Pounamu," Amethyst stated with an obnoxious smile. "Girls' crazy strong and knows how to take a punch."

Turquoise didn't know how to respond to the purple gem's musings. She honestly didn't want to imagine such a scenario playing out. But she had to admit, it was an interesting topic.

"Well?" Amethyst asked, eager to hear what Turquoise was thinking. "Who do you think would win?"

Turquoise was silent as she pondered. She had seen both of the warriors in combat, so she had a general idea on what they were capable of. But something told her that there was something the two were hiding from the others. What that something was eluded her, she just hoped that it wasn't something that was going to trouble them.

"Neither," Turquoise answered, much to Amethyst's disappointment. "Because neither I nor Wolfram would allow such a battle to take place."

* * *

><p>Pounamu smashed through one of the few remaining windows of the top floor as she lept after her Alloy rival. After making a quick observation of her surroundings, she realized that she was the only one there. A smirk crossed her face, she had beaten the Alloy to the top floor.<p>

"Haha, that's right, punk! I won!" she laughed triumphantly. "I am the better warrior!"

"Geez, you're a loud one," an all too familiar voice scorned.

Pounamu spun around to face the voice. There was no way he could have beaten her, she left him in her dust. Yet, standing before her leaning on the door frame was Titanium, smiling as smugly as ever.

"You sure took your sweet time," he said with a smile.

Pounamu could not believe it. She was sure that she was the first one inside the building. It made no sense for Titanium to have won.

"You have gotta' be- how did- you cheated!" Pounamu stammered angrily as the Alloy entered the room. "I don't know how, but you cheated!"

Titanium struck a dramatic pose as if his heart had been pierced.

"Me, a cheater? Madam you wound me," he exclaimed mockingly.

The Alloy's posture snapped back to normal as he began to strut around the ruined room.

"Who needs to cheat when you've got skill?" he asked smugly, twirling his chain playfully.

Pounamu was seething and trembling as she tried to keep her anger in check. But the harder she tried, the harder it became. She was ready to pummel Titanium into the ground. She opened her mouth to curse him but stopped once a foul stench wafted from the other room. Titanium paused and sniffed the air.

"Smells like burnt garbage," he stated flatly. "Come on, Tatts, lets check it out."

Pounamu grit her teeth as she watched the Alloy leave the room. Oh how she hated him. Even Azurite would have made a better team mate, and she hated her too. Pounamu grumbled bitterly as she followed after Titanium. As she entered the next room, the stench became stronger.  
>Her eyes went wide with shock once she spotted the source of the ghastly smell.<br>Slumped in a heap on the floor was a dead body. Maggots crawled inside of the cadaver's slacked mouth.

"Phew, you're a ripe one, aren't ya'?" Titanium asked the corpse as he examined it. "Lacerations on the torso. Fourth degree burns on the head. De-comp levels place time of death about...four days ago."

"Burner attack?" Pounamu asked, not wanting show how impressed she actually was.

"I'd bet money on it," Titanium responded. "Despite all that stuff Garnet said about this city being abandoned, homeless people had taken up living here for god knows why. I guess the H.L.A didn't want their type around here anymore."

"Like blood hounds," Pounamu hissed harshly.

Suddenly, Titanium began to rummage through the corpse's pockets.

"Come on Ivan, lets see what you got," he chuckled coldly as he hovered over the body like a vulture.

Pounamu didn't think she could hate the Alloy any more than she already did, but there he was, proving her wrong.  
>He showed absolutely no respect as he picked through the body's pockets. Finally after a few seconds, Titanium let out a satisfied laugh.<br>The fruits of his plunder came in the form of a pack of cigarettes and an old disposable lighter.

"Thanks, comrade," he cackled as he kicked the body on it's side.

Without hesitating, the Alloy placed a cigarette into his mouth and lit it. After taking in a deep breath, Titanium blew a steady stream of smoke out of his mouth.  
>His eyes snapped back to Pounamu, who was too disgusted for words.<p>

"Want one?" he asked as he held out the pack of smokes.

Pounamu slapped the smokes out of his hand with a disgusted snarl.

"I-hate-you-so-much," she hissed coldly through her teeth.

Titanium responded by blowing a smoke ring in her face and smiling.

That was it, Pounamu had reached her limit.

"I'm going to kill you!" Pounamu roared as she summoned her taiaha staff in a flash of green light.

Titanium simply smiled back at her, cool as a winter wind.

"But you won't," he stated calmly as he took another drag from his cigarette. "Let me rephrase that; you can't."

Pounamu raised the wide, tongue-like tip of her staff up to Titanium's head and held it there.

"Give me one good reason," she hissed. "One good reason why I can't kill you!"

Titanium chuckled and flicked the cigarette butt at her feet.

"You can't kill me for the same reason I can't kill you," he answered stoically as picked up the pack of smokes and lit up another one. "Someone has us leashed."

Pounamu's eyes went wide with disbelief, but she quickly returned to her angry scowl.

"No on leashes me!" she exclaimed fiercely. "No one!"

"Not even Garnet?" Titanium asked playfully. "She seems pretty strong."

Pounamu felt something twinge inside of her, and Titanium could see it.

"You scared of her, Tatts?" he asked.

Pounamu's hands shook with anger as the words the Alloy spoke sank in.

"Shut up," she spat. "I'm not scared of her!"

Titanium shook his head with a smug smile.

"No, you wouldn't be," he stated. "Who's your handler? I bet it's Turquoise."

"Sh-shut up!" Pounamu stammered with a mixture of anger and fear in her voice. "The mighty Jade fears nothing!"

"Jade?" Titanium asked with a cold sting to his voice. "I thought your name was Pounamu."

The green gem's mouth quivered as she tried to form a response, but Titanium didn't need one. He had her right were he wanted her.  
>He suddenly swatted Pounamu's taiaha away from him and got right up in her face.<p>

"Cut the bull, Pounamu!" he ordered fiercely. "Or is it Jade?"

"M-my name is-"

"It doesn't matter what you call yourself!" Titanium retorted, cutting off the green gem's stammering. "Because I know the only thing that matters now."

Pounamu was trembling, she the mighty Pounamu was actually trembling.

"You're just like me little gem," Titanium stated coldly. "We are just dogs on a leash. Only question now is are you a lapdog, or a blood hound?"

"I-I'm nothing like you!" Pounamu responded shakily. "You're a monster, a greedy, vulgar, narcissistic monster!"

Titanium let out a cruel laugh as he heard those words.

"Nothing like me, Tatts? Who are you trying to fool?"

"I am nothing like-"

"I've seen it, that little fire that sparks in your eyes when you fight. That's called blood lust," Titanium hissed. "It's no different from regular lust."

"Lust?" Pounamu asked trembling. "I don't lust over anything. Gem's can't feel lust!"

Titanium chuckled before suddenly grabbing the green gem. He restrained her with one arm while he used his other hand covered her mouth.

"You don't feel lust?" he asked playfully as Pounamu struggled against him. "Like I said, I've seen it. I see it whenever Garnet is near you."

Pounamu suddenly seized and stopped struggling. Her eyes showed a mixture of anger, shock, and shame. Titanium sneered cruelly, his digging had finally struck gold.

"What is it about her, hmmm?" he asked softly. "Is it her size, her curves, or...is it her strength that you lust for?"

Pounamu avoided eye contact as long as she could, but it didn't help her, Titanium could already see it, she was ashamed.

"Underneath all the tattoos, the aggression, the tough girl attitude, you're just a runt drooling over the bigger dog. That is where the similarities between us end. You follow orders because you would do anything to please your betters. I follow my orders out of respect."

Pounamu shut her eyes as tears rolled down them. The Alloy was right, he was right about everything. He was right about the warm feeling she got whenever Garnet was near. He was right about the incredible rush she got when in battle. Everything she did to make herself appear strong and independent had just been stripped from her. For the first time ever, she felt naked and afraid.

Titanium uncovered her mouth and licked his palm clean of the saliva she left on it.

"Gotta admit, Tatts," he stated coldly after smacking his lips. "You do have a fine eye for jewelry. Garnet is strong, and shapely. Makes me wounder what it would be like to see her on all fours like a beast..."

Titanium's chain suddenly snaked down his arm and loosely coiled around Pounamu's waist. The image of Garnet on her knees gave Pounamu a strange warm feeling. To see Garnet, the proud leader of the Crystal Gems reduced to nothing was an arousing thought.

"Personally, I would love to see that tight-laced Pearl or that holier than thou Azurite at the end of my chain," Titanium mused with a sadistic smile. "They wouldn't be so hoity-toity then, would they?"

Pounamu felt a smile creep across her face. The thought of those two nagging earaches being tugged around like animals made her feel a sick sense of amusement.

"It'd shut em' up too," she stated quietly.

"There it is, there's the fire I love to see," Titanium said with a dark smile. "Doesn't it feel good to just give in and accept your desires?"

She couldn't deny it, it felt good to vent out those dark, sadistic wants and needs. Her body was trembling and her face was blushing a dark green. The creature that stood before her, the one she had hated the most, the one she wanted to kill, knew her better than her own kind. Suddenly, she felt Titanium's chain uncoil around her and snake back up his arm.

"Well, this was...neat," he stated as if nothing had happened. "But...we better go check back with Turquoise and Amethyst."

Titanium took one last drag off of his cigarette before flicking it across the room.

"Gonna have to tell em' about about-"

Suddenly, Pounamu slammed him against the wall and held him in place.

"Tatts, what the fuc-"

Before he could finish, the green gem pulled his scarf off and locked her lips around his. This was unexpected...but not unpleasing.  
>But the Alloy would be damned if he was going to let this play out one-sided.<br>With an equal amount of aggressiveness, Titanium pressed forward against the green gem.  
>Like coiling snakes, the two warrior's tongues slithered and slathered against the other, both fighting for dominance.<br>Titanium could feel Pounamu's body pressing hard against his, at one point, he swore he heard the wall behind him cracking.  
>He got a very arousing tingling throughout his body whenever her gemstone caressed the inside of his mouth. And the taste...the taste was oddly familiar.<br>But the longer the two 'embraced' the more wrong he felt. Whenever Pounamu's gemstone slid across Titanium's tongue, he felt something inside of him stir.  
>He paid it no mind at first, but as the two dragged out their little competition, the stronger the sensation became.<br>It felt like something was burning inside of his stomach. His head felt very clouded as the burning seemed to creep up to his head.  
>Then, for no reason he could think of, he bit down. Hard.<p>

"Ouch! Dammit!" Pounamu cursed as she pushed away from the Alloy. "Why did you bite me?!"

Titanium shook the clouds from his head and spat out a mouthful of spit and blood.

"Got lost in the moment," he said with an obnoxious sneer.

"I cannot believe we just did that!" Pounamu exclaimed as she wiped her mouth. "What the hell was I thinking?"

"You weren't," Titanium chuckled. "And that's how I like it. Pure, raw, and uncontrolled."

With that awkwardness still floating in the air, Titanium stowed his cigarettes and pulled up his scarf.

"Come on, Tatts. Lets go find grandma and see whats up."

"We tell no one about this, understand?" Pounamu stressed in a firm tone. "If they ever found out-"

"Yeah, yeah, they'll kill us," Titanium stated dismissively. "Lets just get out of here. That body really smells."

* * *

><p>Turquoise and Amethyst scoured through the bottom levels of the building and had found nothing. The only thing they ran into was a few wild dogs and birds. Suddenly, the earpiece that Turquoise had confiscated from Titanium began to chirp. She placed it in her ear and pressed the open channel button.<p>

"Hello?" she asked warmly.

"Titanium, that you?" the stern voiced Wolfram asked.

"No, this is Turquoise," she responded.

"Whatever, relay this message to the rest of your team," Wolfram stated. "We found something. Meet us outside the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone."

"I'll tell them immediately," Turquoise responded. "We will meet you there."

Turquoise turned to Amethyst and nodded her head.

"They found something."


	16. Chapter 16:Shadow of the Reactor

Chapter 16

* * *

><p>Garnet, Wolfram, Steel, and Azurite stood on a ledge that overlooked the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Like a forbidden obelisk, the abandoned Chernobyl reactor stood against the blue sky, silently spreading the invisible sickness of radiation that hid inside of it's concrete sarcophagus.<p>

"You see it too, right?" Wolfram asked Garnet, who stood quietly with her arms crossed.

"Yep, I see it." she answered. "And it's a problem."

"See what?" Azurite asked, confused as to what was so strange about the dead reactor. There was nothing too unusual about it. "All I can see is twisted metal and concrete."

"Princess is right," Steel stated with an irritated hiss. "There's nothing here but this old Cold War relic."

Garnet turned her head as loud whoosh of air followed by a loud thud sounded behind the group.

"I'm here..."Iron stated calmly as he pulled his feet out of the shattered ground.

Still clinging to the Alloy for dear life was Pearl, Steven, and Carnelian. Iron dropped to one knee and let his team mates climb down off of him.

"D-don't ever do that again!" Pearl stammered, still shaken.

One moment, her group was walking away from the abandoned school, the next, they were hurtling through the air after Iron grabbed them.

"Wolfram's orders..." Iron stated defensively.

Steven shook his head to reshape his wind blasted hair back to it's puffy style.

"How about a heads up next time?" he chuckled.

"Iron, have you seen Titanium and his team?" Wolfram asked stoically.

As if on cue, a loud whoosh of air followed by the loud crackling of earth filled the air.

"You rang, boss?" Titanium asked smugly. "Those relics should be here any second now."

Wolfram was not amused. He reached out and pulled Titanium by his scarf.

"Why did Turquoise have your communicator, Alloy?" he demanded sternly.

Titanium raised his hands defensively with an embarrassed smile.

"What can I say, Granny's got sticky fingers," he chuckled nervously, hoping to lighten the mood.

Wolfram pushed Titanium back with an irritated growl. He was getting tired of Titanium's careless attitude. Titanium retreated to his older brother's side with a toothy grin.

"What did you do?" Steel asked, knowing that such a smile could only mean mischief.

"Nothing..." Titanium responded in innocent and childish tone. "All I did was-"

He cupped his mouth and whispered into Steel's ear. Steel started laughing as his brother tried to catch his breath in-between fits of laughter.

"Brother, you are a walking scandal!" Steel cackled jovially.

"What are you two pukes laughing at?" a harsh growl demanded.

Standing behind them stood the green gem Pounamu, still maintaining her fierce warrior act.

"What, two brothers can't enjoy small talk?" Steel asked, still fighting back his giddy outbursts.

"Yeah, go rattle your own chains for a bit, Tatts," Titanium added harshly.

Pounamu bared her teeth with an angry scowl, still feeling the pain on her tongue were Titanium had bitten her.

"So which one was it?" Steel asked eagerly like a gossiping school girl. "Grape, blueberry, or sour apple?"

"I never kiss and tell," Titanium snickered as he gave a playful wink at Pounamu.

A dim blue glow alerted the group to Amethyst and Turquoise's arrival. Both descended within two blue magic bubbles which popped once they touched the ground.

"Sup guys?" Amethyst asked with a toothy grin. "Heard ya' found something."

Turquoise tossed Wolfram the ear piece she had snagged from Titanium.

"Did he behave?" he asked as he shot an accusing glare at Titanium.

"Oh yes, he was very cooperative," Turquoise responded with a smile.

_Speak for yourself,_ Pounamu thought as she remembered the two's heated moment.

* * *

><p>Amethyst, Pearl, and Steven all regrouped with Garnet, who was staring intensely down at the abandoned reactor complex.<p>

"So, what did you find?" Pearl asked as she looked at the reactor with disdain.

"Yeah, whats up?" Amethyst asked. "Cuz' all I see is lots and lots of junk."

Garnet raised her hands and summoned her gauntlets. Without a word, Garnet drew her fist back and jabbed it forward. The moment her fist struck, the air began to ripple and distort like a broken hologram before it returned to it's normal state.

"It's a photonic repulsion field coupled with an optic distortion prism ," Garnet stated stoically.

"Which means...?" Amethyst asked worriedly.

" It means that the H.L.A are far more resourceful than we though," Wolfram responded.

"It also means that this prism is only showing what they want the world to see; an abandoned nuclear reactor," Garnet stated flatly, crossing her arms.

"So...we found the H.L.A's base then?" Steven asked hopefully.

"Yes, we found it," Pearl responded followed by a sigh of disappointment. "But all for nothing it would seem."

"What do you mean?" Wolfram asked. "Can't we just break the prism?"

"The only thing that I know of that can destroy a photonic repulsion field of this size would be a blast from Rose's Laser Light Cannon," Pearl responded, rubbing her temples in frustration. "But we left it back at the temple."

"I don't suppose any of you got a spare?" Amethyst asked the four Remnants.

Turquoise shook her head.

"No, only Rose ever used one," she stated sadly. "I'm sorry."

Wolfram rubbed his chin as he thought. The only thing between him and whatever it was that was calling out to him was one barrier. He wasn't about to let it stand in his way.

"This 'Laser Light Cannon' you're talking about. What did it look like?"

"It was about seven feet long and pink," Steven answered eagerly, hoping Wolfram was on to something.

"Heavy as all get out?" the Alloy asked.

"Yup," Steven answered.

"Kind of looks like a big unblossomed flower?" Wolfram asked again.

"That's the one," Steven exclaimed happily. "Wait... how did-"

"Iron, deploy 'Jericho'," Wolfram ordered firmly.

"Yes sir..." Iron responded as he removed the metal case from his back. Iron laid the case on the ground in front of Wolfram.

"This is gonna be so cool!" Titanium exclaimed loudly.

Wolfram traced a small triangle on top the case with his fingers. The case began to glow and hum bright green. Suddenly, the case extended by about six extra feet. The front end of the rectangular object shifted and folded back to reveal a hexagonal barrel. At this point, Iron had taken the grinding and clicking weapon and hoisted over his shoulder. Out of the side that was facing Iron popped a small targeting recital and trigger handle. The back end of the weapon unfolded several small fins that covered up cooling air ducts. The hexagonal barrel unfurled, just like Rose's Light Cannon, minus the smooth edges and beauty. Finally the metallic monstrosity let out a loud hum and hiss of steam.

" Jericho deployed..." Iron stated flatly as he held it over his shoulder as if it weighed nothing.

The Gems were speechless. What once looked like a metal shoe box had evolved into a monstrous weapon of unknown origin and power. It's bulky frame and metallic shine screamed that it was man-made. But there was no fooling Garnet, the Alloy's Jericho was reverse engineered Gem technology. She recognized the subtle mystical energies that radiated from the weapons core as the same energies found within Rose's Laser Light Cannon.

"How did you make that?" Garnet demanded with a serous tone. "That's Gem technology, it doesn't belong to you."

"How we made it is none of your concern," Wolfram responded firmly.

"You tampered with Rose's belongings, of course it's our concern!" Pearl exclaimed angrily. "You had no right to exploit her creation!"

Steel let out a cold chuckle as he ran his hand along the Jericho's metal frame.

"Shoulder mounted, lighter weight, an advanced targeting system, and no magic words required," he stated with an all most amorous quiver in his voice. "Does that sound like exploitation or upgrading?"

Pearl bit her bottom lip and shook her arms angrily as she watched Steel's hand caress the bastardization of Rose's most powerful weapons. It was like he was insulting her memory with every stroke.

"What you are looking at is the brainchild of Professor Adler and the Bureau's research and development team," Wolfram stated with a sense of pride. "The Directed-Energy Weapon Model One, or as Adler likes to call it, the Jericho."

"An appropriate name, I assume?" Turquoise asked, rather impressed by the odd combination of Gem and human technology that stood before her.

"Turquoise, how can you be so nonchalant about this?" Pearl exclaimed frustratedly. "They are toying with things they can't possibly understand!"

"Yeah, and they probably stole Rose's Laser Light Cannon while we were off on a mission!" Amethyst added.

"It doesn't matter how we got it!" Titanium boomed loudly, he had heard enough of the Gem's accusations and was itching for a fight. "Bottom line is, we got, you need it, and whether you like it or not, we're gonna fire it!"

"No one does anything until Garnet or I say we do!" Wolfram ordered loudly.

With that being said, Wolfram turned to the tall gem, who was rather surprised that he valued her experience as a leader.

"Give us the order," Wolfram stated. "Until this mission is over, we are yours to command."

* * *

><p>Garnet looked over the Alloys, then to her fellow Gems, and then back down towards the reactor. If the H.L.A had gone to such great lengths to keep this place hidden, then an equally great militant force would be defending it. Should they destroy the prism, it would alert the entire base and start an open conflict. And Garnet had no way of telling how many forces were guarding the base or what kind of arsenal they were wielding. Then there was the dreadful x-factor, how to deal with the H.L.A's Burners. Garnet could easily withstand their intense heat and liquid metal bursts, but she was worried about the rest of her teammates. The H.L.A's brood of Burners were smarter and more organized than Geissel's original brood. To top it all off, she had no idea what could be lurking within the confines of the base. There were so many factors, so many variables, so many ways everything could go wrong. But this could be their best chance at cutting the head off of the H.L.A threat. It was now or never.<p>

"You remember the plan ?" Garnet asked the Alloy leader, who was standing at attention.

"Yes, ma'am," Wolfram responded. "Once we destroy the prism, Steel, you will stay up here with the rest of the Gems and supply anti-tank fire."

Steel redeployed the sniper rifle he had showed off at the temple and looked down the scope of the rifle.

"I've got twenty rounds of ammo," he stated as he adjusted the scope and checked the bolt action. "More than enough for a garrison force."

"Once the battle starts, Titanium and I will eliminate the militants," Wolfram stated as he summoned two small black cubes. "That should clear the way for you Gems."

He then tossed one of the cubes over to Titanium who caught it nimbly. Both Alloys tapped the cubes with their thumbs and let go of them. The cubes levitated in front of them with a green glow. Suddenly, the cubes began to extend and unfold. Wolfram's cube extended three feet in length while Titanium's only extended two feet. Wolfram's cube unfolded into what looked like an M-16 assault rifle with the major differences being that it had no ammo clip and the front of the rifle had two barrels that spun like a miniature Gatling gun. A section of Wolfram's shoulder armor opened up and an ammunition belt snaked up into the gun. Titanium's cube unfolded a long rifle stock and vertical foregrip. The barrel was short and ended with a large muzzle. The ammunition was stored in a round drum magazine. Altogether, it reminded the Gem's of a stylish Chicago Typewriter, something that Titanium had no doubt wanted. After the weapons finished deploying, both Alloys took hold of them and looked them over. Titanium kissed his gun with a loud smooch noise.

"Christmas came early!" he squealed like a giddy child.

Pearl rolled her yes with a contempt scoff.

"Humans and their guns," she stated under her breath so no one could hear her.

"You saw what the beach looked like after the first invasion," Wolfram responded stoically, having heard Pearl's comment. "The world doesn't need to see that again. Bullets are more efficient than spears and swords."

"Or would you honestly prefer it if we were to hack through the militants rather than using a less... primitive method?" Steel asked with a cold, mocking tone.

Pearl stood flabbergasted that Wolfram heard her though his helmet. She opened her mouth to protest, but Garnet put her hand over her shoulder, which meant she should stay quiet.

"And what about us?" Pounamu asked impatiently. "When do we come in?"

"When that blasted siren starts blaring," Steel responded flatly with the memory of the searing pain it caused still fresh in his mind. "That's when you Gems come down to play."

"The sirens hurt us...but not the Gems..." Iron said with a slight shutter.

"He's right," Garnet stated flatly. "Whatever causes the sirens weakens the Alloys, and summons the Burners. That is why we are here, to aid them."

"You Alloys best honor our agreement," Azurite stated hotly. "Whatever we find in the base, we keep."

"Don't worry your pretty little head, Azurite," Steel responded. "You have our word."

"That doesn't mean much," Azurite stated coldly.

"You seemed to like us enough when we saved your lives, perhaps next time we shouldn't be as charitable..." Steel hissed as he tapped Azurite's knee with the muzzle of his rifle.

"Enough!" Garnet ordered loudly. "If we are to succeed, then we are going to need to work together. That means we need to put aside our pride and fight as one. If any of you can't do that, then you can leave."

Garnet patted Wolfram on his back.

"Give the order," she stated firmly. "Lets get this over with."

Wolfram nodded and turned to his fellow Alloys. They knew what needed to be done.

"We all might want to stand back," he stated loudly. "It would be a bad idea to fire the Jericho this close to the prism."

* * *

><p>After everyone had moved about ten feet from where they had been standing, Iron leveled the Jericho and looked down the targeting system.<p>

"Hey, kid?" Titanium asked Steven. "You ever kick a hornet's nest?"

"No..." Steven answered with worry.

"Me neither, let's see what happens!"

"Fire when ready Iron," Wolfram ordered.

"Yes sir..."

Iron dug his feet into the ground and squeezed the trigger of the cannon. The Jericho began to glow and hum loudly as it's hydrogen fuel cells began to power the Gem tech that the weapon contained. Green etchings traced along the cannon as mystical energies began to coarse through the metallic frame.  
>Pearl noticed that small pebbles and clumps of dirt began to slowly lift off of the ground as the cannon drew more energy.<br>Green sparks began to snap and crackle as the humming intensified into a loud pulsing ringing.  
>Several loud metallic clunks echoed from inside the weapon as the jagged petals of the inner barrel blossomed open.<br>Pearl covered Steven's eyes as the green light of the charging Jericho became blinding.  
>Then with a thunderous roar and flash of light, the Jericho cannon unleashed it's fury.<br>What Garnet saw in that split second after the weapon fired terrified her.  
>The laser beam did not show the figure of Rose Quartz.<br>Instead, the beam formed into the figure of a warrior armed with a halberd, with it's pike aimed towards the weapon's target.  
>The force of the blast pushed Iron back, making him dig up the ground with his feet. The beam smashed against the repulsion field and shattered it like glass.<br>The beam continued though the field and carved a glowing hot trail through the ground before Iron finally managed to regain control of the weapon.  
>Finally, the beam stopped firing, leaving the weapon glowing red hot and sparking with static.<p>

* * *

><p>Everyone watched in awe as the prism collapsed, revealing that the abandoned Chernobyl reactor was anything but abandoned.<br>There was a giant opening in the ground at the base of the reactor that lead underneath it.  
>The reactor was abuzz with activity as the garrisoned forces began to scramble to their posts. Tanks began to growl to life and the blades of the H.L.A gunships started to spin. Militants started to pour out of the opening in the ground. As Titanium had said earlier, they had just kicked a hornet's nest.<br>Suddenly, Steel began to giggle and snicker uncontrollably.

"Gentlemen, ladies, I do believe it's time to go to work."

Wolfram and Steel both raised their weapons, ready to charge and show the H.L.A and the Gems what the Alloys were capable of.

"Alloys, attack !"


	17. Chapter 17 : Stoking the Flames

Chapter 17

* * *

><p>The Steven and the rest of the Gems watched as Wolfram and Titanium dove off of the ledge that overlooked the H.L.A compound and smashed into the ground.<br>By now the whole compound was mobilizing to defend the reactor and destroy the Gems; foolishly think that they were the immediate threat.  
>A dozen armored up Soviet troop carrier trucks drove out of the compound, each loaded up with armed militants.<br>Steven watched as the trucks began to make their way towards a concrete ramp that would lead the trucks up towards the ledge where he and the Gems were standing by.

"Hey, those trucks are headed right for us!" he exclaimed as the first truck reached the ramp.

"No they aren't," Steel stated flatly.

There was a sudden deafening boom and a bright flash as Steel fired his rifle. The column blew apart in a fiery explosion as the sniper round tore effortlessly through the trucks in one shot. The blast left a thunderous echo as Steel pulled back the firing bolt and loaded the next round.

"Who's next on the list?" he asked as he lined up his next target.

Through his scope, Steel spotted a cluster of old T-72 tanks rolling out of the compound. Each of the tanks had large slates of obsidian colored armor.  
>The nature of the armor was obviously Gem related, but that didn't matter, if it was in Steel's sights, it was going to die.<p>

"Hey, Pearl, these heathens have no edict." Steel stated out as he lined up his next shot. "Don't they know it's improper to run around-"

He fired the next round, startling the group by it's monstrous sound.  
>A split second after he fired, the tank in the middle of the cluster erupted in a shower of sparks and flames as its turret was blown clean off of it's body.<p>

"-topless..."

The Gem's attention was drawn towards the valley below as gun shots began to ring out. Dozens of militants rushed headlong towards Wolfram and Titanium.  
>The two Alloys stood firmly as bullets bounced harmlessly off of their armored bodies. With the mass of militants drawing closer and closer, Steven started to worry. Wolfram and Titanium were doing nothing, they were just standing, facing the flashing of guns and gleam of bayonets.<p>

"Pearl, why aren't they doing anything?" Steven asked as he tugged on her shoulder worriedly. "They're gonna get clobbered!"

"They're waiting," Garnet answered flatly.

"For what ?" Everyone except Turquoise asked.

Garnet readjusted her shades as she watched and waited for the massacre to erupt. By now the militants had encircled the two Alloys. A mistake.

"For the highest possible kill ratio."

At that moment, both Wolfram and Titanium raised their weapons and unleashed an avalanche of hot led.  
>Like a scythe sweeping the fields, the two Alloys mowed down row after row of the charging militants. Blood geysered as bodies were ripped apart bullet by bullet. Over the gunfire, Garnet could hear Titanium's wicked laughter.<p>

"You get a bullet, and you get a bullet, everyone gets a bullet!" the Alloy cackled as he swept across the charging militants with a growing pile of empty bullet castings piling at his feet.

In contrast to his more blood thirsty comrade, Wolfram did not carelessly hip fire his weapon. He made sure that each shot counted by firing in short controlled bursts.

_Heart, lungs, jugular, brain,_ Wolfram made mental notes after each burst he fired.

Pearl was shocked at how powerful the Alloy's weapons were. Each fired twice as fast as any other machine gun in the world, each spraying a nearly immeasurable amount of bullets. Clearly, they two were developed using Gem technologies. With those weapons, the Alloys could take on an opposing enemy force twice as big. Pearl shuttered to think about what would happen should those weapons be mass produced and sold to military contractors.  
>Turquoise covered her mouth with shock and disgust. This was not the first time she had seen so many people die in such little time.<br>But that still didn't make it any less horrific.

"It's just like Wounded Knee..."she stated sadly.

Another loud blast from Steel's rifle split the air as he destroyed another tank.

"Hmm...something doesn't feel right..." he murmured. "Surly this couldn't be all that these heathens left to defend their base with."

As if on cue, Garnet noticed several rapid bursts of smoke coming from the south end of the compound followed by a high pitched whistling.  
>Arching through the sky towards the Gems were at least forty-eight rockets.<p>

"Rockets!" she exclaimed. "Get down!"

Steven's gem flashed as he summoned a shield to protect the group. One by one the rockets detonated against his shield in a magnesium white explosion.  
>Each rocket was loaded with Fire Salts that would leave a fine red cloud of salts that once they touched anything, would ignite instantly.<br>The salts burned hotter and longer than white phosphorus. But Steven wasn't worried about the flames, he was more concerned with keeping his shield from failing. Rocket after rocked rained down onto Steven's shield, straining it further and further.  
>The ground began to break and crumble as the shock of the blasts shook the earth to he breaking point.<br>Suddenly, the ground heaved and collapsed underneath the shield, sending the Gems and two Alloys tumbling down to the battlefield below.  
>As they fell, Steven felt Pearl grab a hold of him and held him tightly against her body so that she would lessen the impact of the fall.<br>Pearl then felt a massive hand grab her as Iron held both of them against his chest with his back facing the ground.  
>With a loud thud, the Gems and the two Alloys slammed against the ground. Iron groaned sorely as he opened his arms and released Pearl and Steven.<p>

"Oww..." the colossal Alloy groaned as he laid against the ground.

Pearl and Steven both grabbed both of his hands and tried to pull him up to his feet, but to no avail. Iron was simply too heavy for them to lift.  
>After a few attempts, Garnet finally grabbed onto Iron's body armor and pulled him to his feet.<br>Iron shook the haze from his eyes and staggered as he regained his balance.

"Thanks, Red," Iron stated in his usual soft tone.

"Don't mention it," Garnet responded flatly, not bothering to correct the name the Alloy had given her.

* * *

><p>Before anyone could assess the status of their team mates, the distant pounding of cannon fire swiftly caught their attention.<br>The tanks that Steel had not killed had their guns zeroed in on the Gem's position. Steel looked down the scope of his rifle only to find that the barrel had been broken during the impact.

"Damn it all !" he snarled angrily as he threw the rifle aside. "Looks like I am going to be getting my hands dirty after all."

With the orange gleam of hot metal, Steel forged his clawed gauntlet and bolted towards the enemy tanks.  
>Titanium could boast about how fast he was, but even he knew that his older brother was faster. Steel looked like a gray blur as he zipped past Wolfram and Titanium. Sparks flew as Steel raked his claws against the ground as he closed in on the tanks.<br>The tanks began to fire their machine guns as they tried to retreat, but the cold blooded Alloy wasn't about to let them escape. Steel leaped on top of the closest tank and pried it's hatch open.

"Mind if I join you?" Steel hissed as he dove into the tank.

From the Gem's perspective, all they could see was the tank violently rocking back and forth as claws sliced out of the turret with the loud screeching sound of tortured metal. Blood began to seep out of the claw marks like water faucets. Suddenly, the tank turned it's turret towards the other tanks and open fired.  
>At first, this act was met with confusion, but as another tank erupted into a ball of flames, the others began to fire upon the hijacked tank.<br>This lead to further confusion and resulted in all of the tanks shooting at each other.

"What in the world is he doing?" Carnelian asked as each of the enemy tanks exchanged friendly fire.

"Showing off probably," Pounamu said with a small sneer, enjoying Steel's work.

After the last enemy tank erupted into flames, Steel hoped out of his mangled tank and ripped off it's 12.7mm machine gun that was mounted on top of the turret. After checking the weapon, Steel regrouped with Wolfram and Titanium. The two Alloys stood back to back, surrounded by piles of dead bodies.

"So, how goes the hunt?" he asked casually, unfazed by the occasional bullet bouncing off his armor.

"Kind of busy here, man!" Titanium exclaimed as he let lose another stream of bullets.

"Steel, why aren't you using your rifle?!"Wolfram ordered fiercely.

"It broke, I had no other choice," Steel responded coolly. "Besides, it looks like you two have this covered."

"Call me crazy, but shouldn't these bitches have run out of men by now?" Titanium asked as he reloaded his weapon. "I've counted over fifty kills and more just keep comin'!"

Wolfram agreed, a base this large should only have enough room for maybe a hundred men. But more always seemed ready to fill the ranks. Something wasn't right, but Wolfram had no time to ponder what it could be. As long as he could breath, he would stand his ground.

* * *

><p>Wave after wave of H.L.A militants smashed against the three Alloys with complete disregard for their own lives. At first, the Alloys had little difficulty dealing with the enemy onslaught, but soon it became apparent to them and the Gems that they had underestimated the sheer manpower of the H.L.A.<p>

Minutes turned to hours as the once one sided battle started to shift in the H.L.A's favor. Slowly, Wolfram, Steel, and Titanium were pushed back as more and more militants poured out from the opening at the base of the reactor.

"How the Hell are they fitting this many guys in one reactor?!" Titanium hollered over the loud pounding of the Soviet machine gun his brother hip fired. "You said there was only gonna be maybe fifty at most!"

"Shut up and keep firing!" Steel snarled angrily.

Steven tugged on Garnet's hand as he watched another wave charge the three Alloys.

"Garnet, we gotta help them!" he exclaimed urgently. "If we don't help them, then we'll be-"

Steven's eyes widened as he spotted the same bursts of smoke that herald the earlier barrage of rockets. Steven summoned another shield to protect the Gem's from another hail of rockets.

"Garnet, look, there!" Steven pointed to where the rockets had been fired. "Can you see what's launching those?"

Even through the fire and smoke, Garnet's keen eyes could spot those responsible for the rocket fire.  
>Parked in a single row where twelve old Soviet Katyusha rocket trucks. Each one were firing a nearly constant barrage of rockets filled with Fire Salts.<br>That wasn't all she noticed. Garnet noticed that each of the trucks had the same rust stains, the same dents, and the same color as the rest of the trucks.  
>It was like they were perfect copies of each other. Copies or not, they were constant threat, one that needed to be dealt with.<p>

"Iron," Garnet ordered firmly.

"Yes?" Iron asked, glad to finally be of some use.

"Fire the Jericho and take out those trucks," Garnet ordered as she pointed down towards the trucks.

"Okay, Red..." Iron responded as he hoisted the laser cannon over his shoulder.

The weapon began to glow and hum as it charged up. With a clap of thunder, the green laser beam erupted out of the weapon.  
>However, this time the power output fluctuated violently. The powerful recoil of the weapon caught Iron off guard and staggered him, causing him to lose control of the weapon. Instead of just destroying the Katyusha trucks, the beam carved across the remains of the reactor, cutting right through the hastily built concrete sarcophagus that still held most of the radioactive materials within it. With the collective roar of bending steel and concrete, the reactor tower began to slide apart.<p>

"Oops...I did something bad, didn't I?" Iron asked worriedly as he watched the reactor tower collapse.

Everyone was silent as they watched the reactor cave in on itself. This was never part of the plan. The reactor wasn't supposed to take damage as it would release irradiated dust into the atmosphere.

"I don't think 'bad' quite covers it," Pearl stated coldly as she watched a pillar of irradiated smoke rise into the blue sky.

As the wall of dust washed over the valley below, the gun fire stopped. There was too much dust to see what was happening.

"Everyone, get down here!" the loud voice of Wolfram ordered fiercely. "Now!"

Without hesitation, Garnet, Amethyst, Pearl, Steven, and the Remnants made their way towards the last place they had seen Wolfram.  
>The ground was slick with a black sludge, and bodies laid in piles as far as the eye could see. A few of the militants that some how managed to survive the assault moaned in pain as they reached for the Gems. As the dust cloud began to settle, the Gems found Wolfram, Steel, and Titanium standing in the center of the killing field. Even through their helmets, Garnet could see that they were tired. The barrels of Wolfram's weapon were glowing hot from it's constant use.<br>Both Steel and Titanium had dents and scratches tarnishing their armor along with blood splatter stains.  
>Their shoulders were drooped and they were breathing heavily. No one really knew what to say as they approached the exhausted Alloys.<p>

"Umm...good job guys?" Amethyst stated hesitantly. "You...really showed them who's-"

"Look at them," Wolfram ordered stoically. "Look at the bodies."

With a few gasps and repulsed gags, the Gems looked at the carnage the Alloys had created. As they stared at the mounds of limbs and grizzly remains, the Gems spotted something unnerving. The militants that had been slain in the first wave all bled red, but those that were slain after the first wave were bleeding a black sludge. What was more disturbing was the fact that each of the militants that fell after the first wave all looked exactly the same.  
>Same uniform, same gun, same face, same size, same build.<p>

"What the...I'm not the only one seeing this, right?" Steven asked as he tip toed over the dead bodies. "They all look the same."

"Yeah, what gives?" Titanium asked as he lit a slightly blood soaked cigarette. "They can't all be identical twins. Plus, last time I checked, human's don't bleed black goop."

"It wasn't just the militants," Garnet stated as she lifted two intact bodies and compared them. "Their trucks, their tanks, and their gunships, all of them were perfect copies of each other."

"What, like they were replicated? Like, with Pearl's Replicator Wand?" Amethyst asked as she hung on to Iron's shoulder so her feet wouldn't touch the sludge soaked ground.

"But, you destroyed it, Garnet," Pearl pointed out bitterly.

"Maybe they found another," Turquoise stated as she withdrew her prayer stick from under her shall.

Turquoise's eyes glowed a dull blue as she waved her prayer stick before her.

"Wówaš'ake," she whispered as blue lights danced around her.

The familiar blue light of Turquoise's magic cascaded down onto the three battered Alloys. It did little to dull their aches and sores, but it did give them a small boost in energy.

"Hey, Blue, somethings been bugging me," Titanium stated as he flicked his burnt out cigarette at her feet. "How come all of your Gem buddies get weapons, while you got stuck with that little beaded twig?"

Pearl felt her anger flair at the blatant disrespect the Alloy was showing. No one talked to an Elder Gem like that.

"You ungrateful little heathen!" she snapped as she pulled Titanium by his scarf.

"Let it go, Pearl," Turquoise stated tiredly. "The child is only curious."

With an angry scowl, Pearl let the Alloy go.

"They can't keep their hands off of me," Titanium sneered.

"Shut up," Wolfram ordered coldly. "Let the Gem speak."

Turquoise sighed tiredly. She didn't have the time or the patience to give them the full story. That tale was to be told on a peaceful, less violent day.

"In short, this prayer stick is not summoned through my gemstone," she spoke in a sagely manner. "It was a gift from a very dear friend of mine. Through it, I can channel auras of strength, peacefulness, and containment."

"But...what is your weapon?" Steven asked with a childish excitement. "Can we see it?"

Turquoise suddenly became very stern looking as if she had just heard grim news. She pulled her shall over her shoulders comfortingly as she took a few steps back.

"No one can see it," she stated in a foreboding tone.

"But why-"

Suddenly, a loud rumbling came from the reactor. The Gem's and the Alloys readied them selves, hoping they were prepared for what was to come.  
>But there was no amount of training or experience that could prepare them for what was about to happen.<p>

* * *

><p>A sudden high pitch siren blared through out the compound followed by a piercing screeching wave of sound.<br>The Alloys cried out in pain and fell to their knees, gripping their chests and stomachs. Their weapons sparked and fell apart in their hands.  
>One by one the Gems started to fall as well. This siren was different from the one they heard back during the failed invasion of Beach City, this one was far more potent. The Gem's physical constructs flickered and distorted as the siren continued to blare.<br>Through the piercing screech and blaring siren, Steven heard something else. Underneath all the layers of sound, Steven could hear screaming, desperate, anguished screaming. Slowly, the Gems forced themselves off the ground and back on their feet.  
>A thick wall of smoke rose from the ground as the bodies of the dead militants began to writhe and burn.<p>

"Garnet, we need to get out of here!" Pearl shouted over the siren. "We can't win against this many Burners!"

"She's right, Garnet!" Amethyst shouted. "We gotta bail!"

"We are not leaving!" Wolfram suddenly yelled angrily. "We've come too close!"

All around the Gems rose hundreds of if not thousands of Burners.

"Garnet...?" Pearl asked worriedly as more Burners arose from the mounds of bodies.

Garnet's eyes darted in every direction as she looked for a possible way out. Her gaze fell upon one of the burning tanks.  
>Standing on top of it was something the likes of which she had never seen before.<p>

It appeared to be an H.L.A militant from his uniform. But upon further observation, Garnet realized that whatever was standing before her wasn't a human or a Burner. It looked like a half human half Burner hybrid. One of it's eyes was an empty glowing orange socket while the other was blood shot. It's teeth were jagged and crooked. It held a Soviet DshK 1938 heavy machine gun in one hand while the other arm was glowing hot and dripping with liquid metal.  
>Thick metal cables ran through it's body like parasitic worms.<p>

Suddenly the creature let out a loud, grinding roar. The horde of Burners turned to the hybrid.

"Tear them apart!" it roared as I fired it's machine gun wildly in the air.

The Burner horde charged the Gem and Alloys like a tidal wave of burning anger. They picked up weapons and scraps of metal for armor as they charged, increasing their strength and durability.

"We are the future!" the hybrid roared triumphantly.

The Crystal Gems summoned their weapons with colorful flashes of light as they readied themselves for battle.  
>With a pain filled groan, Wolfram pushed himself off of the ground. Wolfram felt like he was on fire.<br>His body screamed at him to stay down, but he would have none of that.  
>Despite the searing pain, he could feel the beating of his heart growing stronger with each beat.<br>One by one the Alloys stood back up.  
>Steam was seeping out of Iron's helmet as he gripped his sledgehammer.<br>Titanium seemed to be shaking like a jack hammer as the ground shook underneath him.  
>Steel twitched as small sparks of electricity snapped and popped between his fingers.<p>

"The future?" Wolfram asked in a cold, menacing voice. "You are not the future."

With a red flash of light, the Alloy summoned his cavalry sabers.

"We are."


	18. Chapter 18: Writhing in Flames Part 1

Chapter 18

* * *

><p>The ground shook as the thousand strong Burner horde stampeded towards the Gems. Embers danced into the air as the charred creatures began to encircle the warriors. The hybrid cackled wickedly as he watched the warriors raise their weapons.<br>No mercy would be shown and he looked forward to watching his army tear the Gems apart, limb by limb.  
>Their bodies would be defiled, mangled, and left as a message for the whole world to see; 'the HLA would never be stopped.'<p>

"WE ARE THE FUTURE!" the hybrid roared triumphantly.

Soon it would all be over. The Gems had made this too easy. With them dead, none would be able to stand against the might of the glorious HLA.  
>He raised his hideously deformed arm in the air to signal the slaughter. That's when he felt something he didn't expect or what to feel; threatened.<br>He had heard intelligence reports about the four abominable metallic warriors from agents in the US, but the hybrid's higher ups had determined that they were inferior to the Crystal Gems. While it was true that they had wiped out the surprise invasion of Beach City and cut through wave after wave of loyal militants just hours ago, the hybrid had been convinced that the metal warriors were nothing but hollow mockeries of the Gem warriors.  
>If all he had been told was true, then why did he feel so uneasy about them all of a sudden?<p>

* * *

><p>Even with all the chaos that surrounded him, Wolfram managed to block it out. All he felt was the searing pain that ripped through his body as the infernal sirens blared endlessly around him.<p>

_Count to four, inhale,_ he told him self over and over again. _Count to four, exhale._

Slowly, the pain seemed to grow distant. It never truly went away, it just became less noticeable. In the pain's place came a new sensation.  
>It was foreign and unexpected, but Wolfram welcomed it. Through the blinding pain in his body, he began to feel alive.<br>His heart was pounding, his hands were shaking, and his stomach was growling.  
>A dull, red glow shown through the gaps in his armor, and the air around him suddenly grew hotter.<br>He could feel and sense every single filthy creature that stood before him. His mind began to run a thousand scenarios of what could happen next.  
>Each one offered an interesting method of dealing with the threat at hand. Wolfram had become nigh clairvoyant, much like Garnet.<br>For the first time in his short existence, Wolfram knew felt what it was like to be free.  
>No Adler, no orders, nothing holding his leash.<br>It was such a glorious feeling. If the HLA wanted to take this feeling, this right from innocent people, then Wolfram would do everything he could to stop them.  
>Even if it meant killing every last one of their militants and Burners to do so, then he would do it happily.<br>That's what he was made for, protecting the rights and freedom of others, no matter the cost.

* * *

><p>Titanium's body shook uncontrollably as gripped his head in pain. He had never felt this amount of agony before. The more he shook and the more he pressed against his head, the more he became aware of his body. He could feel every single molecule in his body as clearly as one would feel their limbs.<br>He could feel his hooked chain as though it were part of his own body. He felt this once before, back when he and Pounamu had their 'little moment' together.  
>It was the same burning sensation he got from her when his tongue touched her gemstone. But this sensation was so much more focused and primal.<br>Through this new pain, he began to feel a new sick sense of pleasure. His breathing became quick and heavy as smoke bellowed from his mouth.  
>The pain, the pleasure, it was so new and exciting. But those loud, annoying sirens were ruining his rush.<p>

"Shut up..." he hissed at the bodiless sirens.

His armor began to morph and twist more hooked chains out of his back.

"Shut up!" he spate angrily with saliva dripping from his teeth.

The hooked chains writhed as they coiled themselves like snakes about to strike. A cold smiled crept across the Alloy's face.  
>He had warned them, now things were going to get bloody. Titanium began to laugh sinisterly as he rose from the ground.<p>

"Fine, you asked for it..."

* * *

><p>Steel's eyes darted and twitch involuntarily as the burning in his stomach spread through out the rest of his body.<br>Steel was no stranger to pain as the FBUR had trained him in pain tolerance. But this was nothing like he had felt before.  
>It felt like he was being ripped apart molecule by molecule. His hands twitched and contorted as the siren continued to blare it's agonizing song.<br>Each and every molecule in his body were rubbing violently against each other. The massive amount of friction created a build up of static electricity.  
>Bright arcs of electricity snapped and sparked between Steel's hands.<p>

"This...is new..." the Alloys rasped as he watched the electricity arced and branch out around him.

This new phenomenon felt familiar, and oddly invigorating. He had the power of a lightning storm literally in the palms of his hands.  
>Burners, being made up of molten metal, were naturally resistant to heat.<br>And Garnet could boast about how she could withstand the rock melting temperatures of lava.  
>But Steel bet that neither of them could survive the nearly unfathomable heat of a lighting bolt.<p>

"Fifty-thousand degrees Fahrenheit..." Steel hissed giddily as he stared up at the Burner horde. "That's five times hotter than the surface of the sun."

Electricity danced all around the Alloy as he readied himself for the fast approaching battle. There were so many potential victims, and he had all the time in the world.

"This will be pleasing."

* * *

><p>Iron let out loud pain filled whines and squeals as he rolled on the ground in agony. Iron didn't understand what was happening or why it was happening.<br>All he knew was that something was hurting him. So many questions flooded his mind as he tried to make sense of everything.  
>What did he do?<br>Why was his body hurting?  
>What did he do to deserve this hurt?<br>Was he being punished?  
>Did he do something wrong?<br>All Iron wanted were answers, instead he only heard the angry sirens screaming at him. It was just like in his dreams, everything was so loud and hurtful.  
>He felt cold and alone. He felt helpless and scared. Desperately looking for some form of relief, Iron rolled over on to his back and looked over at Pearl and Carnelian. They were so pretty but frail looking. Yet they were not afraid, and if they were they weren't showing it.<br>Even against all those mean monsters, they stood firm with their weapons in hand. Those two Gems were the only ones other than Professor Adler and his fellow Alloys who had shown him kindness. Ones so kind and pretty as they were should not be bullied by those monsters.  
>Iron suddenly felt angry.<br>He was taught never to get angry, even while fighting monsters. Adler told him that it wasn't healthy for him to get angry.  
>But Adler wasn't here to tell him what to do.<br>Iron's friends were in danger and they needed to be protected. Steam hissed out of the vertical slits in Iron's helmet. His body temperature began to rise rapidly.  
>His armor got so hot that it actually began to melt in certain parts. Iron did not notice or care about that. This was not his dreams, this was real.<br>Iron was not some small weak runt, Iron was big and strong.  
>Iron was not helpless, Iron was not scared.<br>Iron was an Alloy, and Wolfram was counting on him to keep everyone safe.  
>Iron emitted a deep growl as he rose to his full height, towering over his comrades and many of his foes.<br>The solid iron head of his sledgehammer began to glow with heat.  
>Iron hated bullies, they always picked on those who were too small or too weak to defend themselves.<br>That's what the glowing monsters that encircled his friends were; bullies. Now it was Iron's turn to show them what it felt like to be small and weak.  
>It was his turn to be the bully.<p>

* * *

><p>The Gems and the Remnants could only watch the Alloys rose slowly from the ground, their bodies visibly changing.<br>Whatever was happening to them, it defiantly wasn't planned.  
>Both Garnet and Turquoise could feel the Alloy's once weak mystical energies skyrocket at an alarming rate.<br>By the time the Burner horde had surrounded them, the Alloy's energy levels had reached Crystal Gem levels.  
>Before today, the Alloys had never shown any mystical capabilities, they always made due by using their great strength and coordination.<br>But now they were showing that they too were capable of harnessing Gem-like abilities.  
>Garnet suddenly realized something startling, the Alloys only started showing these abilities after the siren began to blare; when the Burners started to rise. Somehow, the Alloys and the Burners were connected. And any connection with Burners meant a connection with the False Gem.<p>

"The future?" Wolfram asked in a cold, menacing voice. "You are not the future."

With a red flash of light, the Alloy summoned his cavalry sabers.

"We are."

* * *

><p>If Burners could appear nervous, they would. Even though they were a thousand plus strong, they were now facing eight Crystal Gem warriors and four...unknown enemies. With their limited intelligence, the Burners could instinctively determine how high a target's threat level was. But they felt something off about the Alloys. Something about them felt familiar yet foreign at the same time. There was something inside of them that was powerful...powerful and angry.<br>Powerful or not, the Burners had no choice but to fight.  
>She needed to be protected, and had it not been for those skin covered meat sacks that ruled over them, the reactor would be in ruins.<br>They had answered her cries only to be used as beasts of burden by those who had imprisoned her.

"WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR!" the hybrid roared angrily. "KILL THEM!"

With a collective roar, the Burner horde began their attack in full.

"Alloys!"

"Gems!"

"Attack!"

* * *

><p>Garnet slammed her gauntlets into the ground and created a shock wave that threw the charging beasts back into there brethren. Before the creatures could respond, Titanium leaped into the horde, laughing madly. Chains swept and tore through the creatures as Titanium used his bare hands to punch, rip, and break anything near him. Like metallic tendrils, Titanium held several Burners into the air before tearing them apart. He wasn't being quick about it, he would first pull off the arms, then the legs, then finally the head.<p>

"This is a whole new level of awesome!" he roared as he impaled three Burners through the head. "Why didn't I do this before?!"

Pearl and Carnelian ducked and wove as they blocked and attacked the countless Burners that were mobbing them.  
>Pearl's spear easily pierced through the creature's shells while Carnelian's chakram flew like a decapitating wind.<br>Suddenly, the two Gems were slammed from behind by an unseen enemy. When they jumped back to their feet, the Burners that were enclosing upon them all had large panels of thick scrap metal and were using them as shields.

_Garnet was right, they are getting smarter!_ Pearl mentally noted as the creatures formed a phalanx around her and Carnelian.

Pearl japped her spear at the shields, but she just couldn't punch through it. Carnelian nimbly threw her chakram, but she too met similar results.

"Well this isn't very good now is it?" Carnelian asked as she stood back to back with Pearl.

Step by step, the wall of shielded Burners enclosed upon the two Gems. Just as things started to look bad for the two, Carnelian noticed a bright red flash. Her instincts warned her of a fast approaching threat.

"Get down!" she exclaimed as she tackled Pearl to the ground.

Both shut their eyes with dreaded anticipation. The air above them suddenly felt incredibly hot as a loud boom echoed. When they opened their eyes, the only thing left of the shielded Burners were their legs. Something had vaporized them, something of incredible heat. Before they could question anything, more Burners filled the ranks. The two Gems scrambled to their feet and readied their weapons. As the next wave of Burners charged the two Gems, Pearl heard a loud angry voice booming over the fray.

"LEAVE THEM ALONE YOU BULLIES!"

With a loud whoosh of air and a cataclysmic blast of rock and earth, Iron slammed into the charging Burners.  
>Like hungry lice, the creatures swarmed the colossal Alloy, each clawing and prying at his armor.<br>Iron roared and swung his sledgehammer wildly as he tore the creatures off of him.  
>Pearl and Carnelian were dumbstruck as they watched Iron fight against the infernal horde. It was like watching a train wreck that wouldn't stop.<br>The earth shook and broke every time Iron slammed his sledgehammer against the ground.  
>Occasionally, the two Gems had to duck to avoid a few overly zealous swings. Each swing of his sledgehammer sent groups of Burners flying like rag dolls.<br>But despite Iron's apparent advantages, the colossal Alloy began to weaken.  
>Pearl could see that Iron's elevated body temperature was weakening his armor; a weakness the Burners could sense.<br>Their claws began cut deep gashes into the Alloy's armor. Steam hissed loudly as one of the creatures finally managed to pierce completely through Iron's armor.  
>The Alloy wailed in pain as more and more spots in his armor were penetrated.<p>

"Get off of him you heathens!" Pearl yelled as she leaped onto Iron's back and tried to get the Burners off of him.

"Yeah, leave him alone!" Carnelian shrilled angrily as she threw her chakram through the air., decapitating one of the nightmarish creatures.

Pearl and Carnelian stabbed and slashed the Burners off of Iron's back while also trying to keep hold of him.  
>The heat that radiated off of his armor scorched their hands with a sickening sizzling sound.<br>Iron flailed wildly as he tried to tear off whatever it was that was clinging to him.  
>Pearl and Carnelian had to dodge and weave as the Alloy swiped and grasped blindly at them.<p>

"EVERYTHING HURTS!" Iron cried out in anguish as he desperately tried to rid himself of his torment.

"Iron, you need to calm down!" Pearl exclaimed as she pried the last of the Burners off of his back.

"Pearl, you try to get him to stop flailing around!" Carnelian ordered. "I'll try to calm him down!"

Pearl jumped off of Iron's back and landed in front of him with her arms out ready to halt him. Pearl now only hoped that she had the strength to hold back the colossal Alloy.

Carnelian crawled up to Iron's helmet and held tightly to it.

"Iron, sweetly, listen to me!" Carnelian spoke in a clear and firm voice. "The monsters are off of you now. They can't hurt you anymore. Now calm down before-"

Suddenly, gunshots split the air as machine guns roared to life. Iron reached out in front of him and grabbed Pearl and shielded the two Gems from the hail of bullets. The Burner horde had reformed their ranks with armed Burners leading the attack.

"Pearl, are you alright!" Carnelian exclaimed as she noticed a few bullets wounds on Pearl's back.

"I'll live..."Pearl responded shaken as her physical construct pushed the bullets out of her back. "How can things so small hurt so badly?"

"Did they hurt you too...?" Iron asked weakly.

Pearl looked up at Iron's head. The inside of his helmet was glowing with a bright orange glow.

"Yes...I got hurt, but I'll be alright," Pearl responded nervously as the orange glow became brighter.

Iron suddenly pushed the two Gems far enough behind him that they wouldn't get hit by what was about to happen.

"They hurt you, they hurt me, they'll hurt the others..."

As Iron stood facing the Burner horde, the orange glow within his helmet began blindingly bright.

"NOW I'LL MAKE THEM HURT!"

With a loud, terrifying roar, a beam of energy erupted out of Iron's helmet and swept across the battle field. Metal melted, the ground charred, and at least a hundred Burners were vaporized almost instantly. Pearl watched as the beam tore through anything that Iron faced. This attack was terrifying and powerful, even by Gem standards. Pearl felt her skin tingle as she felt something hurt her skin. She realized with horror what the beam was. It was a focused beam of x-ray-heated air.  
>She had seen a similar ability used before. It was used by the False Gem.<br>Once the beam stopped firing, Iron fell face first to the ground with a loud thud.

"Iron!" both Pearl and Carnelian exclaimed as they rushed over to him.

At the sound of their voices, the battered metal colossus rolled over onto his back. Steam rose off of him as his armor began to cool down.  
>Iron's helmet was warped from the intense heat from the beam softening the metal.<p>

"Are you alright?" Pearl asked as she tried to pull the Alloy to his feet.

"Got all the hurt out...now I feel sleepy..."Iron answered with an exhausted tone. "But...still more monster left to fight..."

With a pained grunt, Iron forced himself off of the ground. He no longer felt angry or like he was burning from the inside.  
>He bent down and pulled his sledgehammer out of the ground. He still had orders to follow and there was no time to rest.<br>Despite Pearl and Carnelian's wishes, Iron charged back into combat.  
>Pearl was impressed, she had thought little of the Alloys before.<br>But seeing the determination in their actions gave her a reason to respect them; or at least respect for Iron.

Pearl withdrew a second spear from her gemstone and turned to Carnelian.

"We can't let him do all the work now can we?" Pearl stated with a proud smile.

Carnelian smiled and tapped her gemstone and summoned five extra chakram discs.

"No, we can't," Carnelian responded while firmly holding the razor sharp ring discs in between her fingers with three in each hand. "He's our friend, and we help our friends."

Pearl nodded her head as the two Gems both ran to Iron's side.

"That we do Carnelian. That we do."

* * *

><p>Sorry for the lack of updates. That little thing called life has been getting in the way.<p>

Here's a little tidbit of information.

Iron's melting point is 2,800°F.

Uranium's melting point is 2,070°F.

Just some food for thought.


End file.
